


Dance With Shadows

by FiveDollarMixtape



Category: Warriors - Erin Hunter
Genre: A lot of death and angst, Angst, Death, oh did I mention angst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-08
Updated: 2018-06-07
Packaged: 2018-11-10 18:59:03
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 20
Words: 20,433
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11132793
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FiveDollarMixtape/pseuds/FiveDollarMixtape
Summary: Oakkit lives in NorthClan, along with four other Northern Clans.  Survival is hard.  StarClan is believed in, but not worshiped.  The cats that live in the North are left rough from their hard life.  And when a rogue group comes to the Clans, and Oakkit gets a prophecy, she pushes it aside to help her Clan the best she can.  How could dead cats help her fight, anyway?





	1. Allegiances

**Author's Note:**

> Dedicated to everyone who helped me with characters, my beta and editor Auggy, and my older brother.  
> Spotify Playlist- Dance With Shadows

**NORTHCLAN**

**Leader- MISTSTAR-** A light blue-gray she-cat with deep green eyes.

_Apprentice- Brokenpaw_

**Deputy- FROSTFANG-** A gray tom with a white chest, paws, and muzzle with blue eyes.

 **Medicine Cat- FEATHERRIPPLE-** A bright ginger tom with green eyes.

**Warriors-**

**LITTLENOSE-** A brown tom with blue eyes.

 **MOSSWING-** A short, gray furred tom with bright green eyes.

 **RUSTLECLAW-** A brown tom with gray eyes.

 **SWIFTFLIGHT-** A gray tabby she-cat with blue eyes.

 **DEERBURR-** A dark brown tom with small white patches splashed across his pelt, with bright green eyes.

 **WILLOWFANG-** A gray, white, and black she-cat with green eyes.

_Apprentice- Coalpaw_

**MOUNTAINFROST-** A large, brown and white tom with gray-brown eyes.

_Apprentice- Meadowpaw_

**ADDERCLAW-** A dark brown tom with blue eyes.

 **LIONROCK-** A large, golden-brown and white tom with bright amber eyes.

 **TIGERFOOT-** A brown tabby tom with green eyes.

 **STAGFUR** \- A dark brown she-cat with yellow eyes.

 **TAWNYRAIN-** A black and gray tabby she-cat with bright green eyes.

 **RAVENSTONE-** A black she-cat with dark amber eyes.

 **HAWKFEATHER-** A brown tom with soft amber eyes.

 **SHREWTAIL-** A gray tom with yellow eyes.

 **WOLFTOOTH-** A silver and gray tom with dark gray spots and green eyes.

**Apprentices-**

**BROKENPAW-** A brown tom with yellow eyes.

 **COALPAW-** A large, black and white tom with green eyes.

 **MEADOWPAW-** A light brown she-cat with sea-green eyes.

**Queens-**

**TANGLEWHISPER-** A tortishell and white she-cat with dark amber eyes. Mother of Creekkit and Oakkit.

 **MISTSTAR** \- Expecting Littlenose's kits.

**Kits-**

**CREEKKIT-** A tortishell tom with bright green eyes.

 **OAKKIT-** A white and dark brown tabby she-kit with amber eyes.

**DRAFTCLAN**

**Leader- CHERRYSTAR-** A ginger and brown she-cat with amber eyes.

 **Deputy- ENDERSOUL-** A muscular, black she-cat with violet eyes.

_Apprentice- Darkpaw_

**Medicine Cat- ROSETAIL-** A small, brown and cream she-cat with hazel eyes.

**Warriors-**

**FALCONWING-** A gray and brown tom.

 **BEARFOOT-** A large brown and black tom with amber eyes.

_Apprentice- Stonepaw_

**BREEZECLAW-** A large, smokey gray tom with blue eyes.

_Apprentice- Heatherpaw_

**PEARLHEART-** A cream and light brown tabby she-cat with green eyes.

 **STORMHEART-** A light gray and black tom with green eyes.

_Apprentice- Quailpaw_

**DAWNFEATHER-** A silver, white, and dark gray she-cat with blue eyes.

_Apprentice- Dappledpaw_

**FEATHERSTRIKE-** A gray she-cat with blue-gray eyes.

 **WINDFERN-** A brown and black tabby she-cat with amber eyes.

 **ICEFANG-** A white tom with brown paws and blue eyes.

 **HONEYSPLASH-** A ginger she-cat with black markings and amber eyes.

 **FOXFUR-** A ginger she-cat with green eyes.

 **WOLFFANG-** A gray tom with blue eyes.

 **OWLEYE-** A dark brown tom with one blue eye and one closed and scarred eye.

 **STREAKPELT-** A gray tom with aqua blue eyes.

 **NIGHTBLAZE-** A black tabby she-cat with ginger paws and amber eyes.

 **SWEETCLOUD-** A silver tabby she-cat with green eyes.

**Apprentices-**

**STONEPAW-** A gray tom with almost golden eyes.

 **HEATHERPAW-** A brown she-cat with golden eyes.

 **DARKPAW-** A dark gray and black tom with fiery golden eyes.

 **QUAILPAW-** A dark gray and black tom with golden-brown eyes.

 **DAPPLEDPAW-** A white, gray, and brown she-cat with hazel eyes.

 **Queen- LIGHTFOOT-** A pale yellow and white she-cat with green eyes. Mother of Nutkit, Icekit, and Sweetkit.

**Kits-**

**NUTKIT-** A pale gray and black tom with amber eyes.

 **ICEKIT-** A small, white and gray tom with green eyes.

 **SWEETKIT-** A silver and pale yellow she-cat with clear blue eyes.

**GLACIERCLAN**

**Leader- JUMPSTAR-** A black and brown tabby tom with blazing blue eyes.

 **Deputy- FROSTFALL-** A silver and gray she-cat with icy green eyes.

 **Medicine Cat- COTTONPELT-** A white and pale gray she-cat with blue eyes.

_Apprentice- Bluepaw_

**Warriors-**

**MINKTAIL-** A white and black she-cat with brown eyes.

 **GOOSEFLIGHT-** A gray tabby tom with green eyes.

 **LEDGEFOOT-** A light brown tom with green eyes.

 **LAURELCLAW-** A light brown and white tom with blue eyes.

 **ICESTORM-** A white and cream tom with green eyes.

 **RAVENWING-** A black she-cat with amber eyes.

_Apprentice- Greenpaw_

**IVYSOAR-** A brown and white she-cat with green eyes.

 **ROBINFLIGHT-** A small russet she-cat with black markings and bright green eyes.

 **RIVERHEART-** A dark gray tom with amber eyes.

 **HAWKTALON-** A dark brown tabby tom with white paws and amber eyes.

**Apprentices-**

**BLUEPAW-** A light blue-gray she-cat with blue eyes.

 **GREENPAW-** A silver and black tabby with green eyes.

**Queens-**

**IVYBLOSSOM-** A tortoiseshell she-cat with brown eyes. Mother of Shadekit, Cloudkit, and Alpinekit.

 **ECHOFALL-** A light gray she-cat with white muzzle, ears, paws, chest, and tail-tip. Expecting Riverheart's kits.

**Kits-**

**SHADEKIT-** A brown she-cat with green eyes

 **CLOUDKIT-** A brown and cream she-cat with hazel eyes.

 **ALPINEKIT-** A gray and cream tom with brown eyes.

**SNOWCLAN**

**Leader- DEWYSTAR-** A silver tabby she-cat with blue eyes.

 **Deputy- DOVEWHISKER-** A pale gray she-cat with blue eyes.

 **Medicine Cat- RIVERSTONE-** A large, silvery-gray tom with icy blue eyes.

**Warriors-**

**STORMRUNNER-** A dark gray, almost black tom with blue-gray eyes.

_Apprentice- Graypaw_

**SOMBERHEART-** A black and ginger she-cat with sky blue eyes.

_Apprentice- Winterypaw_

**WILDSHADOW-** A ginger and black tom with green eyes.

 **TINDERFLOWER-** A pale brown she-cat with white markings and hazel eyes.

 **MOONHEART-** A pale gray she-cat with hazel eyes.

_Apprentice- Falconpaw_

**FALCONCLAW-** A silver, dark gray, and white tom with amber brown eyes.

 **FAWNSTEP** \- A brown and white tabby she-cat with amber eyes.

 **ICEFOOT-** A gray tom with blue-gray paws and blue eyes.

_Apprentice- Barkpaw_

**YELLOWBREEZE-** A ginger tom with one green eye and one blue eye.

 **GORSEFANG-** A gray and brown tabby tom with hazel eyes.

_Apprentice- Eaglepaw_

**SORRELSTRIPE-** A ginger and black tabby she-cat with green eyes.

 **CLOUDFLASH-** A gray tabby tom with some ginger on his chest and blue eyes.

 **WHITEFLOWER-** A white she-cat with amber eyes.

_Apprentice- Willowpaw_

**GORSESHADE-** A black and gray tabby tom with amber eyes.

**Apprentices-**

**GRAYPAW-** A gray and black tom with hazel eyes.

 **WINTERYPAW-** A small, snow white she-cat with blue eyes.

 **BARKPAW-** A pale brown she-cat with amber eyes.

 **FALCONPAW-** A gray she-cat with dark blue eyes.

 **EAGLEPAW-** A silver and gray tom with amber eyes.

 **WILLOWPAW-** A pale gray she-cat with blue eyes.

 **Queens- FROSTFLOWER-** A gray, black, and white she-cat with blue eyes.

 **Kits- DARKKIT-** A dark blue-gray tom with blue eyes.

 **Elder- TUNNELSTEP-** A dark brown tom with amber eyes.

**FREEZECLAN**

**Leader- REDSTAR-** A flame colored tom with amber eyes.

 **Deputy- HOLLYFOOT-** A black tom with hazel eyes.

 **Medicine Cat- DUSKLEAF-** A gray and white she-cat with dark brown eyes.

_Apprentice-Rowanpaw_

**Warriors-**

**GROUSELEG-** A fluffy brown, gray, black, ginger, white, and silver tom with amber eyes.

 **HICKORYTUFT-** A large, reddish-brown tom with silvery-blue eyes.

 **REDRAIN-** A dark red tom with watery blue eyes.

 **FADEDGLORY-** A white she-cat with color changing eyes.

 **JADEDWING-** A black and blue-gray tom with pale green eyes.

 **MISTYSKY-** A dark gray she-cat with sea blue eyes.

 **TUMBLESTEP-** A gray and white tom with hazel eyes.

_Apprentice- Twigpaw_

**SAGEHEART-** A golden brown she-cat with amber eyes.

 **DEADMIST-** A black tom with pale green eyes.

_Apprentice- Flintpaw_

**LAKELEAP-** A blue-gray tom with dark green eyes.

 **BLUEFROST-** A blue-gray she-cat with blue eyes.

 **HOLLOWLEAP-** A dark brown and black tabby tom with green eyes.

 **NUTSKY-** A pale brown she-cat with blue eyes.

 **LOGRUNNER-** A black and pale brown tom with green eyes.

_Apprentice- Swiftpaw_

**DUSKWHISPER-** A black she-cat with amber eyes.

 **GRAYFERN-** A gray tabby tom with green eyes.

 **RUSHSKY-** A black tom with bright blue eyes.

 **VIXENSONG-** A russet furred she-cat with amber eyes.

**Apprentices-**

**TWIGPAW-** A brown she-cat with green eyes.

 **FLINTPAW-** A dark gray tom with hazel eyes.

 **SWIFTPAW-** A black tom with golden eyes.

 **ROWANPAW-** A dark red tom with blue eyes.

**Queens-**

**SILVERHEART-** A silver and gray she-cat with yellow eyes. Mother of Flamekit and Frostkit.

 **BIRCHFANG-** A brown she-cat with brown eyes. Mother of Applekit.

 **FEATHERPELT-** A black she-cat with a white underbelly. Expecting Hollowleap's kits.

**Kits-**

**FLAMEKIT-** A ginger tom with yellow eyes.

 **FROSTKIT-** A silver and gray she-kit with amber eyes.

 **APPLEKIT-** A russet and gray she-kit with green eyes.


	2. Prologue

Cold was the first feeling she felt. The chill seeped past her fur, past her skin, and right down to the bone. The tiny kit shivered, a visible breath leaving her jaws. A tail covered in chilled fur pulled her closer to a warmth so hot that it felt like it was burning. Another chilled pelt full of fluff pressed against her.

"Get more moss, and some feathers!" a voice snapped. "We need to keep these two warm."

A tongue rasped itself over her head. "You'll be warm soon, little ones," a kind and gentle voice whispered. "You're cold now, but you'll be that much stronger for it."

She relaxed into the warm fur around her. Another breath left her mouth, clouding in the air. Something that wasn't fur was packed in around her, making her even more warm. "Keep them warm, Tanglewhisper," the voice from earlier spoke. "We can't lose these ones."

"I'll take care of them," the kind voice meowed. She assumed that this was Tanglewhisper. "I'm not going to lose more kits."

"Good." She heard the cat who the first voice belonged to start to leave. "I'll fetch Deerburr for you."

"Thank you," Tanglewhisper mewed, before the not-fur-but-still-comfortable material pressed harder around her. "You two will be the most well-fed cats in the Clan," Tanglewhisper added.

The large thumping signaled the arrival of another cat. "Are you okay?" the sound of a tom's voice didn't hesitate to ask. "Are the kits okay? Are you warm? Are they warm? Have they eaten yet?"

The warm mass that she was pressed against purred. "We're fine, Deerburr. Meet your new kits." The heavier pawsteps came closer, and a purr rumbled above her head.

"They're beautiful," the tom, Deerburr, breathed. On instinct, she latched onto one of the nubs that was in front of her, and started to suckle. Warm milk poured into her mouth. "She'll be a strong one," Deerburr purred.

"I hope so," Tanglewhisper mewed. The tail behind her moved, and a few heartbeats later the fluffy pelt joined her in suckling. "What should we name them?"

Deerburr let out a hum. "Creekkit?" he suggested. Tanglewhisper seemed to be thinking.

"Creekkit for the tom," she meowed. "And... Oakkit for the she-kit?"

"Creekkit and Oakkit," Deerburr purred. "Beautiful names for beautiful kits."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to the Kithood Chronicles of Dance With Shadows! Basically, how this is going to work is I'm going to upload this in stages- I just finished writing out Kithood, so next I'll be writing apprenticeship, and when that's done it'll be published one chapter at a time. Updates every Wednesday.
> 
> Don't worry- the rest of the chapters (well, most of them, there are a few short ones) are longer than this. This is just the prologue, so you don't have to worry about it setting standards.
> 
> ~Muffiny


	3. Chapter One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For me, it's 12:44 in the morning. I'm typing this on my phone. Why? Because a storm knocked out the power at my house, and I don't know how long it's gonna last, so I'm uploading now. My room is being lit by three candles, and I keep hearing beeping of things telling us to turn the power back on. Save my soul, and I'm sorry for any mistakes you find. Phone editing is a bitch.

_"We're just kits, we're not supposed to be heroes."_

  
"Take _that_ , filthy SnowClanner!" Creekkit growled, leaping towards his sister. The two kits tumbled in the pristine, fresh snow, clumps of it sticking itself to their fluffy fur. On instinct, Oakkit rolled along with her brother, her paws clutching at her brother's fur until she was pinned.

"I don't _wanna_ play, Creekkit," she complained.

"You _never_ wanna play," the tom shot back, gently batting at her ears with a paw.

"You always wanna play," Oakkit grumbled.

"Please, Oakkit?" the tom begged. "I wanna spend quality sibling time with you!"

The she-kit let out a sigh. "Fine," she meowed.

"Yay!" Creekkit cheered, leaping to his paws.

Oakkit was smaller than her brother. Her paws were a bit too large and made her fumble, and her tail was long and thin, but she was constantly reassured by her mother that she would grow into her paws and tail. Her pelt was fluffier than most kits, due to the need to keep her warm. The pelt itself was in a tabby pattern, with white and dark brown stripes. Her forepaws, an ear, and her tail tip were a solid dark brown, and her eyes were a warm amber.

Creekkit was the larger of the two kits. His pelt was just as fluffy as his sisters, but his muzzle looked a bit crooked. Oakkit had heard Tanglewhisker say that it would make him look handsome when he was older, and she didn't want to think about that. His pelt was tortishell, almost completely matching their mothers, and his eyes were a copy of their fathers.

Oakkit rolled over to her paws, her long tail flicking behind her. "Let's play warriors!" Creekkit meowed. "I'll be Creekstar, leader of NorthClan! Who're you?"

"Um…" Oakkit began. "Oakbranch, warrior of… DraftClan."

Creekkit tilted his head. "You're not going to be Oak _star_?"

"No," Oakkit mewed. "I'm fine with just being a warrior."

The tom stared for a heartbeat, before he shrugged his shoulders. "If you say so," he mewed. A light appeared in his eyes as he leapt at the smaller kit. "Stay off of NorthClan territory, Wind Chaser!" he yowled.

"Chase me off, then!" Oakkit snapped back, balancing on her hind legs and hitting the other kit in the muzzle before the two collided, falling back onto the snow once more. Oakkit struggled against the tom, using her strength to flip them over. She struggled to pin him, but before she could, Creekkit used his brute strength to shove her off of him.

The more the fight went on, the more Oakkit realized that she was having fun. A smile fixed itself on her face as she swiped clumsily at her brother's ears- a move that was sure to make him irritated. With a short purr, she failed to dodge as Creekkit flashed out a paw at her.

"Keeping warm, I see." The two paused in their mock battle, looking up at a larger-than-life (to them, at least) tom. His eyes were the same green as Creekkit's, and his dark brown fur was the same shade as Oakkit's. Tiny, white patches sprinkled throughout his pelt. Under long fur, defined muscle rippled.

"Deerburr!" Creekkit cheered, his ears perking as he looked up at his father. The larger tom let out a rumbling purr.

"You two will make fine warriors, from what I just saw," he meowed.

"Really?" Oakkit asked, taking a few pawsteps closer to her father. The tom nodded, before narrowing his eyes at the two.

"Have you eaten today?" he asked.

The one-moon-old kits nodded. "Tanglewhisper didn't let us go outside until we'd eaten," Oakkit happily informed him.

"Good," the warrior meowed, flicking his tail to the side. "But, it's not good for kits to be outside for too long."

"Why not?" Creekkit complained.

"Because kits are too important to not stay warm," Deerburr told them. "When I was a kit, we had two elders. They used to say that it snowed nine moons of the year and hailed the other three up here." He started padding towards the nursery, with slow pawsteps so that his kits could easily keep up. "They used to say that living up here was worse than death, but we used to say that was only because the cold made their joints hurt so much."

"Up here?" Oakkit asked.

"We live in the North," their father meowed, "where only the strong survive. It's always cold, and prey is hard to find. If you were to travel South, you would find where the soft cats live. Where it's warm for half of the year, and prey is everywhere. It's even easier to find prey during their cold season." Deerburr paused outside of the entrance to the nursery. "Even the kittypets are tougher up here," he joked. "Or, at least they're smarter. Go on inside," he urged, gently shoving the two kits inside the warmer den.

Creekkit hesitated. "If all of the Clans live up North, then why are we the only one called NorthClan?"

"Because we live the farthest up North. Do you know what that means?" Deerburr asked. The pair of littermates hesitated and glanced at each other before they shook their heads. "It means we're the strongest of them all."

* * *

 

The nursery, Oakkit realized, was confining. Tanglewhisper and Deerburr kept reassuring her and Creekkit that this was the place that would keep them safe and warm, Oakkit wanted to leave. She wanted to go out on her own and explore the camp and not have her parent's worries hanging over her head.

Tanglewhisper had told her that if there were elders, she could go to them to hear stories. She told Creekkit that the Clan's medicine cat, Featherripple, probably wouldn't mind entertaining them for a while. Oakkit didn't want to go into a den stuffed with herbs. She wanted to enjoy the snow, the cold air, and watch the warriors and apprentices go about their day.

Now, though, Tanglewhisper had taken them outside to teach them about nighttime.

The three were situated right outside the nursery's entrance. The large tortishell sat with her tail curled elegantly around her paws, and Oakkit did her best to copy her mother's stance. Creekkit didn't bother with sitting- with snow up to his chest, he stared in awe up at the sky. Oakkit followed his gaze, staring up at the glittering lights above her. The moon was almost a full circle, casting light down onto the camp.

"That," Tanglewhisper explained, "is called Silverpelt. Each star in the sky is a representation of a StarClan warrior."

"What's StarClan?" Creekkit asked, tilting his head in confusion.

The queen purred. "Oh, right, you haven't heard of StarClan before, have you?" she meowed. "StarClan are our warrior ancestors. They're cats who've died, and now live above us."

"And every StarClan cat is a star?" Oakkit meowed.

"That's right," Tanglewhisper's whiskers twitched.

"There are a lot of stars up there," the she-kit mewed.

"Life is hard," the queen told her. "Cats die every moon."

"Will I go up there one day?" Creekkit meowed.

"Most definitely," Tanglewhisper purred. "So will Oakkit, Deerburr, and myself."

The tom's face screwed up in disgust. "Does Oakkit have to go to StarClan?"

"Hey!" Oakkit growled, the muscles in her hind legs bunching as she leapt at her littermate. Creekkit just let out laugh as they tumbled.

"I was joking!" he laughed, even as Oakkit managed to pin him to the ground. Her mother's amused purr reached her ears, and she turned her head to look at their mother.

Amber eyes that were almost identical to Oakkit's were lit up with happiness. Her fur looked a bit messy, but the white mixed in with the tortoiseshell made up for the ruffled fur. Her whiskers twitched as the tabby felt Creekkit's hindpaws press against her belly, pushing her away from him. A soft paw batted her muzzle, and her tail flicked in irritation. Before she could attack, jaws dug into her scruff and lifted her off of the ground. "Alright, you two," Tanglewhisper's voice was muffled. "Back to the nursery."

"But _Tanglewhisper_!" Creekkit complained. The queen ignored him, turning tail and padding into the nursery. She settled Oakkit in the nest, while an annoyed Creekkit stumbled onto the soft moss and feathers. Surrounded by warmth, a stark contrast from the cold outside and warmer than the warmth that was naturally in the den, she easily feel asleep.


	4. Chapter Two

_"You could be the king, but watch the queen conquer."_

"Okay, so," Creekkit meowed. "I'll be Creekstar, and you'll be Oakbranch, my deputy who doesn't agree with how I'm leading the Clan and has decided to try and kill me on my last life so you can be leader."

"I wanna be Oakstar," Oakkit meowed.

"But you said you didn't want to be a leader when we were playing warriors!"

"But I wanna be leader _now_."

The tom sighed. "Okay, what if you're Oakbranch, and I'm… Creekfang. Our leader, the brave and noble Deerstar, just died, and we're fighting over who should be leader next."

"Which one of us is the deputy?"

"Uh…" Creekkit thought for a heartbeat. "Tanglewhisper was. She's dead, too."

"Wouldn't the medicine cat decide who would be leader next, then?"

"They're traveling for some reason, and don't know about Deerstar and Tanglewhisper."

"Then wouldn't the other leaders decide?"

The other kit scoffed. "The other Clans aren't strong enough to handle the affairs of NorthClan." A frown fixed itself on his face. "Even if _perfect_ GlacierClan think they could."

Finally, Oakkit nodded. "Okay." She lifted cold paws out of the cold snow. "Bring it on, Creekfang!"

"Oh, I will, Oakbranch!" Creekkit launched himself at his littermate, but with clumsy pawsteps Oakkit evaded the attack. Before she could do anything else, a light blue-gray paw stepped between the two kits.

"I heard that you were fighting for my position?" The two kit craned their neck to look up at the cat.

Miststar was covered in a light shade of blue-gray fur, the kind that looked like mist that a river would throw into the air. Her eyes were a dark green and glittered with amusement. There was a nick in one of her ears from a battle long past. The she-cat made Oakkit want to become an apprentice sooner, so that she could do things like what Miststar had done for the Clan.

"Hi, Miststar!" Creekkit meowed, his tail flicking happily. "Did you come to see Tanglewhisper?"

"Partially," she meowed. "I also came to check on how you two were doing."

"Really?" Oakkit meowed.

Miststar nodded. "Really. Kits are important here."

"Oh, Miststar!" Tanglewhisper spoke, quickly padding up to the leader. "I heard that you might be moving into the nursery soon."

The leader sat down, nodding her head to the queen. "I will someday soon," she meowed. "For now, I have a Clan to lead and Brokenpaw to train."

"Who'll train Brokenpaw when you're in the nursery?" Oakkit asked.

Miststar hummed. "Deerburr or Lionrock," she mewed. "I haven't quite decided yet."

"Lionrock is your kin, you know," Tanglewhisper purred to the kits.

"Really?" Creekkit asked, his eyes wide. "I heard cats talking about what a good warrior he was, even though he was young!"

The tortoiseshell nodded. "Him and Tigerfoot are littermates, and they were my first litter."

Miststar nodded. "And since Brokenpaw is Tigerfoot's kit, that means he's your kin, too."

"Stagfur is Tigerfoot's mate, isn't she?" Oakkit asked. "That makes her kin, I think."

"It does," Tanglewhisper meowed. "Now, before you two start exploring the rest of our family tree, it's time for you two to take a nap."

"Oh, come _on_ , Tanglewhisper," Creekkit complained.

"Can't we stay up for a little bit longer?"

Tanglewhisper shook her head. "Once you start training, you'll be begging for a nap."

Miststar purred. "It looks like you have your paws full, Tanglewhisper."

"They do their best," the tortie told their leader. With a dip of her head, she turned around and padded back towards the nursery with her reluctant kits in tow.

* * *

_The forest around her was dark. Long, threatening shadows covered the ground. Towering above the rest of the trees was an oak tree. With long, thick branches and leaves the greenest she'd ever seen, Oakkit sat in awe as she stared up at the beautiful tree. The stars above her glittered, giving only the barest amount of light to the snow that dusted over the ground._

" _Stay out of the shadows, Oakkit,"_ _a voice whispered._

"Oakkit," Creekkit's voice meowed as his paw shook her awake. "Oakkit! You have to come see this!"

"Wha?" she mumbled, lifting her head. Bleary eyes focused on Creekkit, who was doing his best to shove her to her paws.

"Come on come on come _on_!" he urged. With a tired, groan, Oakkit rose to her paws and stumbled after her brother as he ran out of the nursery.

"What's so important?" Oakkit grumbled.

"We captured a DraftClan apprentice!" Creekkit told her, which made her mind snap to awareness. "See, look!" He pointed with his muzzle towards the currently unoccupied Elder's den.

Sitting next to a larger warrior, one who Oakkit recognized as Lionrock, was a gray tom. Most of his fur was dark gray, but his belly, muzzle, and paws were a lighter shade. His tail was long, much like how Oakkit envisioned her tail being when she got older despite what Tanglewhisper told her about growing into it. His eyes were amber, yet they took on an almost golden shade. He lifted up a paw and shook off the snow clinging to the fur with a strange look on his face.

She sniffed the air, but from where she was sitting she couldn't get a scent. "Let's go talk to him," Oakkit meowed. Creekkit nodded his agreement. With her head held high, Oakkit led the way towards the two cats.

Lionrock was a large tom. Most of his fur was a golden brown color, but his muzzle and ears were white and his paws were a darker shade of brown. His eyes were the same amber as Oakkit's and Tanglewhisper's. Now that she was able to study him closer, he could see the resemblance he shared with Deerburr. She could easily recognize him as kin.

"What are you two doing here?" Lionrock asked, narrowing his eyes and tilting his head.

Instead of answering, Creekkit sniffed the air. His nose scrunched in response. "DraftClan smells weird," he meowed. Sniffing, Oakkit couldn't help but agree.

The warrior hesitated for a heartbeat before speaking. "...Yes, they do," he answered.

The two kits nearly pounced on the unfamiliar apprentice, and Lionrock seemed a bit to stunned to do anything but watch for the few heartbeats that the two asked questions.

"What's your name?" Oakkit asked.

"Is it true that DraftClan can control wind?" Creekkit added.

"What?" the apprentice asked.

"Deerburr told us that DraftClanners could control wind," Oakkit meowed.

"I think he was messing with you," the tom meowed. "And my name is Stonepaw."

"Okay, okay, enough," Lionrock finally spoke, lifting a paw and nudging the kits away from Stonepaw. "Go… play mossball, or something."

Creekkit's ears perked. "We haven't played mossball before!" he meowed. "Come on, Oakkit, let's steal some moss from Tanglewhisper!"

Oakkit nodded, her tail flicking from side to side. "Bye, Stonepaw! Bye, Lionrock!" she meowed, before the two raced back into the nursery. Carefully, the two inspected the nest that Tanglewhisper was still sleeping in. Carefully, Oakkit lifted a paw and and started prying moss out of the nest.

"No, not that stuff!" Creekkit hissed quietly, shaking his head. "Take this stuff," he meowed, prying out a softer part of the nest. Carefully, the two formed it into a ball and rolled it outside.

"I heard that we're supposed to protect the mossball from the other kit," Oakkit meowed. "I'm guarding it first."

Creekkit let out a dramatic sigh. " _Fine,"_ he meowed, crouching. Oakkit situated herself on top of the mossball, her eyes narrowing as they fixed themselves on her littermate. The toms tail flicked back and forth, back and forth… and then he pounced, his paws flexing. Oakkit leaned back, but that didn't stop Creekkit crashing into her. With her tail flicking wildly, she managed to stay balanced on her hind paws, and pushed back against her brother, forcing him away from her and the mossball. Creekkit huffed, but he circled around her slowly and carefully before quickly flashing a paw out to push the mossball away from under her. With a leap, he captured the ball between his forepaws. "Got it!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I work at a church that's about a twenty minute drive from here- a church that's so conservative that it's actually kinda funny. The last Sunday I worked there, they had a substitute pastor talk about (and I can't even come up with shit like this) how the government was turning christians atheist.
> 
> Anyway, this week there's a thing called VBS- Vacation Bible School. I have to be there to film the worship and this play thing they're doing (I have to get on stage today because I'm on one of the portable cameras and we need to do a green screen AND I AM NOT PREPARED FOR THIS) Since this is just for elementary schoolers, they have to do something to keep the kids interested besides really bad music and a pretty dumb play- Crazy Games. Yesterday's Crazy Game was about everyone sinning and getting a ball. But, the thing that made me want to tell you about this was what the kids that weren't playing had to do.
> 
> Imagine an auditorioum full of 100+ kids, all screaming/chanting "ALL HAVE SINNED!" over and over again, and that was my life yesterday. It legit sounded like a cult.


	5. Chapter Three

_"Never had I seen someone look so lost in their own home."_

The cold, long seasons drove creatures to different states of desperation. For NorthClan, a creature invading camp for even a taste of the prey they had caught was something that happened too often for any cat to let their guard down around the fresh-kill pile. Oakkit had heard stories of it happening, of course, but she hadn't expected it to happen when she was still a kit. Especially when her and Creekkit were playing mossball, and a DraftClan apprentice was waiting for Miststar to come back to camp to decide what to do with him.

The fox was large, with white, bristling fur that blended in nearly seamlessly with the snow. Amber eyes were glazed over with hunger- Oakkit could see its ribs through its pelt. Cats were instantly on it, scratching and biting. The fox was starving. The cats attacking it didn't make it stop trying to get to the fresh-kill pile for a heartbeat. What did make it stop, though, was when its eyes landed on the two undefended kits, frozen in place and staring in fear at the creature.

As if she had been summoned by the fear her kits felt, Tanglewhisper stood protectively over her kits with a snarl that the tabby kit was sure could send the other four Clans running with their tails between their legs. After all, you couldn't just threaten a queen's kits and not expect her to unleash all her StarClan-given fury onto you.

The fox lunged, and Tanglewhisper countered with a strong strike to its muzzle. The fox shook its head, lifting a large paw and hitting the queen with a surprising amount of strength on her side, making her stumble and her kits open. A warrior, one that Oakkit recognized as Stagfur, clinging into it's fluffy tail with her claws and teeth didn't stop it from snapping it's jaws forward towards the kits. Oakkit was frozen in place. While Creekkit had tried to leap out of the way, it didn't stop the fox's jaws from clamping down on one of his hindlegs.

The fox lifted its head, shaking it back and forth and bringing Creekkit with it. Oakkit's eyes were wide as she watched her brother- she barely processed a tortoiseshell shape clamping her jaws around the creature's neck and a gray one barreling into its side. With a cry of pain, Creekkit fell from the fox's jaws, and Oakkit didn't bother watching the rest of the fight as she rushed towards her brother.

"Creekkit?" she asked, lifting a paw and nudging his shoulder gently. He let out a cough, and a whimper. She sniffed, feeling tears burning in her eyes. "You gotta get up, Creekkit," she told him. "You _gotta_. You won't be any fun when you're hurt, so you gotta get up!" She sniffed again, turning her head to look at the mangled mess that was his leg.

Blood covered all the fur that was left, and it looked like the fox had bit down so hard it reached bone. His paw was facing the ground, and Oakkit didn't want to look at it anymore. His green eyes were closed. Oakkit looked back at the fox, to see Lionrock, Stagfur, Stonepaw, and her mother all standing over the body of the fox as it breathed shallowly, and as it's blood stained the white snow.

"T-Tangle- Tanglewhisper," Oakkit sobbed. Her voice sounded different when she was crying, and she could feel hot tears making their way down her face. The queen turned away from the fox, her amber eyes widening at the sight of the small tom.

"Where's Featherripple?" the she-cat yowled, claws scraping against the hard earth. At the sound of his name, the tom lifted his head from where he was sitting outside the medicine den, protecting his herbs from the unpredictable fox. His eyes widened as he saw Creekkit, and he flicked his tail.

"Bring him inside," he ordered, eyes sharpening.

Featherripple was a large tom, with ginger fur and bright green eyes. A part of one of his ears was missing, which Oakkit had always found cool, especially for a Medicine Cat, but it was a fact that she didn't care about with her brother laying injured in the snow and whimpering in pain. Tanglewhisper had once told her that he was a warrior before he started training as a Medicine Cat.

The queen gently picked up her kit by the scruff, quickly padding inside the medicine den. Oakkit had the feeling that she wouldn't be allowed inside, so she stayed where she was. No cat came up to her, so she sat alone in the middle of camp.

To Oakkit, no time seemed to pass before Miststar and Brokenpaw padded into camp. Her eyes zeroed in on the fox that had yet to be moved. "What happened?" she asked, her voice filled with all the authority of a Clan leader.

Lionrock padded up to her and started explaining in a quiet tone. Stonepaw looked a bit nervous as he stared at Miststar, his tail flicking back and forth.

"Tell Featherripple to come to me when he's done treating Creekkit," Miststar ordered. Lionrock dipped his head. The leader turned her head to look at Stonepaw. Sniffing the air, her eyes narrowed. "Why is a DraftClan apprentice in our camp?"

"We found him in our territory," Stagfur meowed. Flecks of blood had yet to be groomed from her dark brown pelt, and her yellow eyes were filled with seriousness. "He didn't tell us why he was there, so we brought him back to camp for your judgement on what to do with him." With a glance back at the apprentice, she spoke again. "He did, however, help fight the fox."

Miststar nodded, padding over to stand imposingly in front of the gray tom. "What's your name, apprentice?"

He swallowed. "Stonepaw," he meowed.

"And you helped my warriors fight a fox," the she-cat added.

Stonepaw nodded. "Yes, Miststar."

The leader nodded in response. "Then as our thanks, we'll let you go home with no punishment from us," she meowed. "I cannot, however, promise the same for Cherrystar. Brokenpaw," the brown tom blinked.

"Yes, Miststar?" he asked.

"I'm trusting you to bring Stonepaw to the border," Miststar meowed. "Don't cross, you will wait for a DraftClan patrol there. Be sure to tell them about him fighting the fox." With a purr, the she-cat turned her attention to her apprentice. "Consider this your first assessment."

An excitement lit up Brokenpaw's yellow eyes as he nodded. He gestured for Stonepaw to join him with his tail, and the two padded out of camp.

* * *

Oakkit wasn't sure how long she sat there. For a bit, Stagfur sat beside her, but she didn't say anything. Miststar sent concerned looks her way, but other than that there was nothing. As soon as Deerburr had padded into camp, he was told about Creekkit, and he had vanished into the Medicine Den. Without Creekkit, there felt like there was nothing to do in camp.

It was only when she started shivering did Tanglewhisper pad out of the Medicine Den, sitting down next to her kit and pressing their pelts together. Oakkit looked up at her mother.

"Is Creekkit gonna be okay?" she asked. Tanglewhisper sighed.

"We don't know yet," she meowed. "Featherripple says it's in StarClan's paws, now."

"How important is StarClan to us?" the tabby looked up at the rising moon as she spoke.

"It depends on the cat, really," the queen meowed, "They're more important for Medicine Cats than for leaders, and more important for leaders than for warriors. For most warriors, we think that survival is hard, and there isn't much dead cats can do for us except give us advice and our leaders their nine lives."

Oakkit was silent for a long while, staring up at the sky. "Do you think StarClan is going to let Creekkit heal?"

"Let's hope so, Oakkit," Tanglewhisper mewed softly. "Now, come on. You need sleep." For once, Oakkit didn't argue.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you're wondering if I feel bad about this- I don't. I'm having lunch with Satan, actually.


	6. Chapter Four

_"We are the children of the witches you weren't able to burn."_

It took half a moon for Oakkit's question to be answered, and it wasn't the answer she had been hoping for. With a look on his face that the kit couldn't describe, he called Tanglewhisper, Deerburr, and Oakkit into his den. As soon as they were settled, Oakkit spoke.

"Is Creekkit okay?" she asked, her eyes wide with worry.

A lot had changed since the fox attack. For one thing, Oakkit hadn't seen Creekkit since he was injured. Miststar had moved into the nursery, giving Brokenpaw's training to neither Lionrock or Deerburr- instead, Mosswing took over the tom's training. The most prominent change for her was that no cat woke her up in the mornings anymore.

"He'll…" Featherripple hesitated. "He'll heal."

"And what does  _that_  mean?" Tanglewhisper growled. Oakkit's fur stood on end as she listened to the usually calm she-cat growl at the imposing Medicine Cat. Deerburr leaned over and whispered something into his mate's ear, and slowly, the queen relaxed.

"His leg isn't healing properly," Featherripple explained, his scarred ear twitching. "I don't have the herbs to risk breaking the bone again so it can heal the right way." Oakkit felt the blood drain from her face as the tom spoke. She didn't completely understand what she was hearing, but she knew she didn't like it. "He won't be able to walk properly anymore. We'll have to wait a little longer to be sure, but I don't think he'll be able to be a warrior."

"Wh… what?" Deerburr asked,

"But he  _has_  to be a warrior," Oakkit meowed. "He wants to be a warrior, so he has to be one."

Featherripple shook his head. "I'm afraid that's not how it works," he meowed. "StarClan are the ones who decided to do this to him."

"Then StarClan can make him a warrior, can't they?"

The ginger tom shook his head once more. "I'm sorry, Oakkit."

It took a moment of processing, but Oakkit's fur rose and her eyes narrowed. She rose to her paws, her tail twitching in anger. "Then I hate StarClan!" she yowled in her squeaky voice. "I hate them, I hate them, I hate them!" She turned tail and raced out of the den, not caring about the voices behind her calling her name.

* * *

_The forest around her was dark. Long, threatening shadows covered the ground. Towering above the rest of the trees was an oak tree. With long, thick branches and leaves the greenest she'd ever seen, Oakkit sat in awe as she stared up at the beautiful tree. The stars above her glittered, giving only the barest amount of light to the snow that dusted over the ground._

" _Stay out of the shadows, Oakkit,"_   _a voice whispered._

_Her ears perked at the sound of flowing water. She had been warned away from water- in the North, cats didn't know how to swim, and falling in during the cold season could lead to a short and cold death. She turned her head to see a quickly-moving river passing by the large oak tree._

" _Stay out of the shadows," a voice repeated._

Oakkit woke to the sound of a gasp. She lifted her head to see Tanglewhisper gone (with Creekkit again, she assumed) and Miststar in pain, her eyes screwed shut and her breath coming in heavy. "Miststar?" Oakkit asked. The she-cat opened one eye to look at the tabby. "Are you okay?"

"I… I think," she panted, "that I'm kitting."

Oakkit blinked. "You mean…  _now_?"

Miststar nodded. "Now. Fetch Featherripple, would you?" The kit nodded, springing to her paws and bounding out of the den. She followed the large paw prints in the snow towards the Medicine Den, and slipped inside.

"Featherripple!" she called.

The tom padded out from behind a bend in the den, tilting his head almost curiously at the kit. "Yes, Oakkit?"

"Miststar says she's kitting."

The tom's green eyes narrowed slightly as he nodded. "Tanglewhisper?" he called, turning his head to look to where he came from. "Come help me with Miststar. Find a stick and get some wet and dry moss." Oakkit heard a hum. She stumbled out of the way when Tanglewhisper padded towards the entrance with a stick and moss in her jaws, with Featherripple on her heels with his muzzle full of herbs.

Curiously, Oakkit padded towards where the older cats had come from. Curled up in a small ball, with his flank slowly rising and falling, was Creekkit, sleeping alone in the den. The closer she got, Oakkit could see his injured leg better. It was wrapped in cobwebs, and it splayed out from the rest of his body. The position looked uncomfortable, but she didn't think about it too much. She raised a paw and gently nudged her littermate's shoulder.

"Creekkit," she meowed. "Wake up."

The tom let out a groan, lifting his head to look up at her. His eyes looked groggy with sleep, and he blinked a few times. "Oakkit?" he asked. She nodded.

"Miststar's kitting," she told him.

"Miststar moved into the nursery?" he asked. Oakkit nodded again.

"About half a moon ago." Oakkit tilted her head. "Have they not told you anything?"

"Only the whole… I might not be a warrior thing." At the mention of it, Oakkit's tiny claws unsheathed without her realizing.

"You  _will_  be a warrior," Oakkit reassured, eyes blazing. "If StarClan won't make you one, then we'll have to do it ourselves."

"How would we do that?" Creekkit folded an ear back in confusion, his eyes narrowing along with the movement.

"We'll get the apprentices to teach us things," Oakkit meowed. "We'll learn the basics of fighting and hunting, and when Miststar and Featherripple see us, they won't have a choice but to make you a warrior apprentice."

Slowly, a smile appeared on Creekkit's face. "Let's do it!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I lost my glasses, so I'm using an old prescription until I find them. My tarot cards said that they'd be behind something. I'm just glad that the glasses I'm using now are only a little bit off from my other ones.


	7. Chapter Five

_"I am the daughter of a king that forgot my name."_

She hated the north. Snow kept sticking to her fur, cold swept through her thin coat of fur, and she didn't know if she'd ever be able to shake the fear of water that she had once swam through. A quarter moon ago, a tom had dived into a river after a fish, and quickly frozen to death once he reached the surface. Cats, born and bred in the south, were dropping like flies just from the cold.

Once, she had suggested that cats  _couldn't_  live this far north- look at what it was doing to them. Her father had only snarled in her face, claws unsheathing, growling that  _he_  was the King and they would do as he said. Respectfully, she had dipped her head and apologized, ignoring the frustration that was building up inside her.

"You," a voice called, one that she knew all too well. She sat down, holding her head high as a large, pitch black tom padded up to her. "You're four moons old, we should be traveling faster," he snarled. "I won't let your tiny legs slow us down."

She dipped her head. "I'm sorry, father."

His green eyes narrowed. "You should be. We won't slow down for you again. Either you keep up or you get left behind." She bowed her small head, her eyes trained on her father's paws, before he turned tail and walked away.

"I don't see how you're related to him," a tom's voice meowed. She lifted her head to look at a cat that looked to be a few moons older than her. The only color in his pelt was a few strands of gray fur, and blue eyes stared down at her. "I mean, I guess you look alike, but we all do here."

She turned her face back towards the King, who was steadily disappearing into the crowd of black pelted cats. "Do you think he was always like that?"

"I hope not," the tom mewed. "I don't want to think about him as a kit." Hesitantly, she nodded in agreement.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for a short chapter, but it's an important one to the plot. I thought it would have more of an effect if I just left this part by itself.


	8. Chapter Six

_"We're a new breed rising, with fire in our eyes. We don't fear anything, because we've already died."_

Oakkit fell asleep next to Creekkit. She was curled up in the nest, her pelt pressed against her littermates. For a heartbeat, they were back in the nursery. Tanglewhisper was curled around the two of them, and Miststar hadn't moved in yet. When she peeled open her eyes, she saw the interior of the Medicine Den. Parting her jaws in a large yawn, she wondered if Miststar had finished kitting yet. Slowly, she stood and left the nest before she raced out of the den.

In the clearing was something that Oakkit had never seen before. Every cat in the Clan that was currently in camp was eating- gathered in small groups, they shared a piece of prey between themselves. The fresh-kill pile was nearly empty, and while Miststar and the Clan's deputy, Frostfang, would usually be strict about who gets prey and when, no cat seemed to care.

"Oakkit!" a voice called. "Over here!" the kit looked over at a group of apprentices, and she slowly padded over to the group of three.

Coalpaw was a large tom. Most of his fur was jet black, while his paws and tail matched the color of the snow. His eyes were a bright, emerald green. Meadowpaw was a beautiful, light brown she-cat. Her eyes were a sea green, and they were filled with a happy light as she waved her tail at her. Brokenpaw dipped his head in greeting to the young she-cat.

"Are you okay?" Coalpaw asked, tilting his head in concern. "You were in the Medicine Den for a long time."

"I was just visiting Creekkit," Oakkit meowed. "Is Miststar done kitting yet?"

Meadowpaw nodded happily. "That's what the celebration's for!" she told her. "There's three kits- a tom two she-kits."

Oakkit's eyes widened. " _Three?"_  she asked.

Brokenpaw nodded, a strange look in his eye. "There was a fourth. Featherripple and Tanglewhisper couldn't get him warm fast enough," he explained.

"I heard that Miststar lost a life," Coalpaw added.

The tabby kit's ears drooped. "Oh," she mewed.

"Still," Meadowpaw meowed, her voice sounding uplifting, "we have three more kits that'll make great new den mates someday."

"Hey," Coalpaw suggested, "Tanglewhisper and Miststar might let you meet them. They're your denmates, after all."

Oakkit blinked. "Okay, I'll do that."

"Once you figure out their names, tell us!" Meadowpaw urged. The kit nodded.

"Bye," she mewed, before racing off towards her mother.

Tanglewhisper, Deerburr, Tigerfoot, and Littlenose were all sitting outside of the nursery, sharing a hare. Oakkit skidded to a stop in front of the group of warriors. "Can I meet the kits?" Oakkit asked.

Tigerfoot narrowed his green eyes a bit. "The apprentices didn't put you up to this, did they?" he purred.

"No," Oakkit meowed, shaking her head.

"Are you  _sure_?" Littlenose asked, his ear flicking.

"Well, they suggested it," Oakkit mewed, "but I'm doing it cause I want to."

"Alright," Tanglewhisper meowed, rising to her paws. "But you have to be quiet. It wasn't easy for Miststar." Oakkit nodded, and the queen padded inside the nursery with her kit on her heels.

Miststar was sleeping, her tail curled around moss and three sleeping balls of fluff. Occasionally, one of them would let out a tiny mewl, or move in their sleep. The first kit that Oakkit studied was a deep brown tom. His fur was even more fluffy than hers and Creekkit's, and they had the fluffiest fur in the Clan. He shared the fluffy-fur trait with his littermates. The next kit was a pale, silvery-gray color that reflected the light filtering in through the den entrance. The last was a blue-gray she-kit with a brown paw, tail, and muzzle.

"Why're they so fluffy?" Oakkit asked.

Tanglewhisper shrugged. "That's just how kits are," she responded in a quiet voice. "Your fur gets more and more sleek as you get older." With her tail, she gestured to the brown tom first, then the silver she-kit, and lastly to the blue-gray she-kit. "These are Brackenkit, Gracekit, and Riverkit."

"Brokenpaw said that one of the kits died," Oakkit mewed.

Her mother let out a soft sigh. "That's true. His name was Seedkit."

"Coalpaw said that Miststar lost a life."

"That's also true." Silence covered the air before the queen spoke again. "How would you like to try some real prey?"

"Really?" Oakkit nearly screeched, before Tanglewhisper shushed her. In a softer voice, she repeated the word.

"Yes, really," the tortoiseshell purred. "Follow me." Tanglewhisper padded out of the den again, her tail flicking back and forth. The tabby followed after her, and she watched as she ripped off a piece of the rabbit and passed it to her. "Go share that with Creekkit," the queen ordered. Oakkit nodded, picking up the meat in her teeth before she raced into the medicine den.

She dropped the piece of rabbit in front of Creekkit. For a moment, she watched as his nose twitched as he scented the food. She lifted a paw, one that was much smaller than her remembering it being, and shoved her littermate's shoulder. When he lifted his head, his eyes immediately went to the prey.

"Tanglewhisper said we have to share it," Oakkit meowed.

"We get solid food?" he asked. Oakkit nodded happily. She settled herself across from her littermate, and the two started eating their first piece of prey.

It was hard to chew. Her first bite filled up her entire mouth. Fat caused pieces to stick together, but if she chewed at it for long enough, she could swallow a piece of it. Flavor exploded across her tongue. With a purr, she took another bite.


	9. Chapter Seven

_"You're already hurt. You're already in pain."_

" _Stay out of the shadows, Oakkit."_

" _Stay out of the shadows."_

_The ground was cold and dark. She knew that she wasn't supposed to go near water, but she felt pulled towards the river, anyway. Slowly, pawstep by pawstep, she creeped towards the water. She looked over the lip of earth at the cold, cold water- water that she was sure was supposed to be frozen over, but wasn't. She could see two cats in the water. One, she could recognize, the name on the tip of her tongue, but she couldn't completely recognize them. The second was unfamiliar. They were larger than her, and they had black fur._

" _Stay out of the shadows, Oakkit." The voice came from behind her._

With a yawn, Oakkit opened her eyes. She was surprised to see that she was still in the medicine den, lying in the same nest as Creekkit. She looked up to see Featherripple standing next to the nest. Tanglewhisper and Deerburr were sitting near the wall of the den, and Creekkit's snickering reached her ears.

Featherripple's scarred ear flicked. "Enjoying your nap, I hope," he meowed dryly. Oakkit stumbled to her paws, her whiskers twitching nervously.

"Sorry," she mumbled. Tanglewhisper flicked her tail- a motion that Oakkit realized was a silent summon. She bounded over to her parents, sitting down a bit in front of them so she could have a clear view of whatever they were gathered here for. Featherripple watched her with an amused look on his face. Once she had sat down, he looked back at Creekkit.

"Today, we'll be taking off the cobwebs and starting on physical therapy," the tom meowed. "It won't be fun, but it's necessary." Creekkit nodded, his green eyes shining. The ginger tom stood and took one pawstep into the nest. With careful claws and teeth, he peeled off the cobwebs. Oakkit heard a soft gasp from behind her at the sight of her littermate's leg.

The angle of the paw had been fixed, so the leg looked natural. The skin, however, was covered in a large, angry scar- the only places that had fur was the paw and the top of the leg. "Woah," Oakkit mumbled, with wide eyes filled with awe.

Creekkit had a weird look on his face. Slowly, the toes of his paw flexed, then relaxed. "Why'd that take so long?" he asked. "It doesn't usually take that long."

"You have to get used to your leg again," Featherripple answered. "We'll start with standing up."

* * *

It took a moon. One moon for the medicine cat to come to a conclusion- although Creekkit had been improving steadily, his progress was slowing down, and it was slowing down too soon for him to be able to walk normally again. With no prior training, there was no way for Creekkit to be a warrior.

The now three moon old Oakkit was infuriated. She  _knew_  that Creekkit could be a warrior. They just had to try, didn't they? With enough practice, Creekkit could be a good a warrior as Miststar. With a nod of her head, Oakkit started to make her way to the medicine den, before she was stopped by Miststar's kits.

"Where're you going?" Brackenkit asked, his wide green eyes questioning as they stared up at the larger kit.

"To see Creekkit," she meowed. Gracekit lifted her head.

"I've only seen him a few times," she mewed, her voice quiet. "Does he live in the Medicine Den?"

Oakkit thought for a heartbeat. "He won't for much longer," she told them.

"Is it true that a fox injured his leg?" Riverkit asked, curiosity filling her green eyes. Oakkit nodded.

"He helped chase it off," she lied, holding her head high.

"Really?" Gracekit asked. Oakkit nodded. The other she-kit's blue eyes were wide with an emotion that she Oakkit couldn't place.

"He must be the strongest kit in the Clan, then," Brackenkit meowed. Riverkit scoffed.

" _I'm_  the strongest kit in the Clan," she meowed.

Oakkit ignored her, and continued making her way towards the Medicine Den. With a bounce in her step, she entered the shadowy den. She padded down the practiced path from the entrance of the den to Creekkit's nest. To her surprise, the tom was already awake. His head was resting on his paws, and he blinked his green eyes as his littermate entered the den. "Oh, hey Oakkit," he meowed.

"Come on," she meowed, her tail flicking to the side. Her amber eyes were filled with determination. "I don't think that Willowfang has taken Coalpaw out, yet."

"What're you talking about?" Creekkit asked.

"I told you that if StarClan won't make you a warrior, then we will," Oakkit meowed. "And StarClan isn't making you a warrior."

A large smile spread itself on the tom's face. He lifted himself to his paws, using his forepaws first then twisting his body to stand on his hindpaws. Even though he had improved since he started working with Featherripple, he still walked with a limp. The two kits made their way out of the den as fast as Creekkit could go. The tom narrowed his eyes as they adjusted to the light, and he looked around camp. "Where's Coalpaw?" he asked.

"Uh…" Oakkit began, surveying the camp until she found the black and white apprentice. "Over there," she meowed, gesturing with her muzzle towards the apprentice's den, and leading the way.

Coalpaw was a large tom. Most of his fur was jet black, but his tail and paws were snow white. His eyes were a bright emerald green. Gracekit was sitting next to the older tom, her tail flicking side to side as she spoke, but she cut herself off as she saw Creekkit and Oakkit. Coalpaw nodded his head to the two.

"Hello," he meowed, tilting his head. "What are you doing out of the Medicine Den, Creekkit?" he asked.

"We want to learn battle moves," Oakkit meowed. "We were wondering if you could teach us." Gracekit blinked, before easily lifting herself onto her hind legs and placing her forepaws on Coalpaw's flank.

"If you teach them battle moves, will you teach me?" she asked. Coalpaw seemed to hesitate for a heartbeat, glancing at Creekkit, before giving a slow nod.

"...Sure," he meowed. Creekkit bounced in his place, easily yet awkwardly landing on his three stronger legs. Oakkit let out a happy purr, and Gracekit gave Coalpaw a smile that took over her whole face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today is now, as it is known among myself and two of my friends, Witch Wednesday. We started it yesterday, when my friend thought that it was Wednesday. But I don't know how this'll effect my upload schedule- if I forget to post a chapter before I leave or after I come back twice then I'll switch it to either Tuesday or Thursday, but otherwise it'll stay Wednesday.


	10. Chapter Eight

_"Because we're all just kits who grew up much too fast."_

Creekkit and Riverkit thought that it was a great idea. Brackenkit, while more reserved about his thoughts, decided he liked the idea. Gracekit and Oakkit had a bad feeling.

Maybe it was just because of how well Creekkit and Riverkit got along. Riverkit was almost bursting with energy- she was constantly moving and twitching and doing something. Creekkit was the same- he would always be trying to get Oakkit to play one of his games. After the fox attack, physical therapy was the only time he could let out his energy, and even though he was exhausted at the end of it, he was complaining about wanting to do something not too much later. Now that Featherripple let him out of the Medicine Den outside of physical therapy, he was flourishing in expelling his pent-up energy.

It was Riverkit, though, that suggested the idea to sneak out of camp. It was Creekkit who made the plan.

That was how Oakkit ended up watching Riverkit and Brackenkit pad towards the dirtplace with a dark feeling in her gut to match the dark sky above them. Still, though, she padded through the tiny entrance in the dirtplace with Creekkit at her side. That feeling was forgotten as soon as she saw the towering trees up close.

The trees were white, blending in beautifully with the snow covered ground. Patches of dark brown wood peeked through the white of the forest, but the world was so pale the brown looked black. Riverkit had her tiny, sharp claws dug into one of the trees, a determined look on her face as she scaled the tree. With one steady paw at a time, she made her way up to the first branch, only to miss and fall back down to the earth. The snow cushioned her fall, allowing her to quickly stand up and shake the snow out of her fur.

"I'll conquer the tree someday," Riverkit meowed, leading the way away from the camp. "Just you wait, I'll be the best tree climber in all five Clans."

"Like how you'll be the best fighter in all five Clans?" Brackenkit commented dryly.

"And the best hunter?" Gracekit added.

"I heard swimmer, once," Creekkit mewed.

"I think she meant floater," Oakkit meowed. "If she got into the water, she'd freeze before she could dry off."

"I would not," Riverkit argued. "I heard that Riverstone and Somberheart of SnowClan, and Redrain of FreezeClan can swim."

"Isn't Riverstone a Medicine Cat?" Creekkit asked. "Why would a Medicine Cat need to swim?"

"Maybe he likes it," Gracekit suggested quietly, looking down at her paws.

"Why would a cat  _like_  swimming?" Brackenkit asked.

"Maybe there's water herbs," Oakkit meowed. She turned her head to look at her littermate. "We should ask Featherripple."

Riverkit shuddered. "Featherripple kinda scares me. Have you seen that  _scar_?" she asked. "What kind of Medicine Cat has a scar like that?"

"Miststar said he was a warrior before he was a Medicine Cat," Gracekit meowed.

"She said he got it when he was a kit, too," Brackenkit meowed. Oakkit and Creekkit glanced at each other, Oakkit flicking her ear in confusion. Creekkit only shrugged.

The kits padded farther into the white forest. The familiar scent of NorthClan surrounded them, reminding them whose territory they were in at all times. Creekkit started panting, not used to walking this long on his injured leg. Creekkit and Oakkit sat down to take a break, and the other three sat down with them, not wanting to venture into the forest without the older kits.

"My warrior name's gonna be Riverspirit," Riverkit meowed. "It  _has_  to be."

"Why?" Brackenkit asked.

"Because of my personality!" Riverkit answered, nodding to herself. "And I've already decided that Gracekit is gonna be Gracewing. She doesn't talk much, and she's light on her paws, so that has to be it. Brackenkit, you're gonna be Brackenclaw, because of your long claws."

"I'm gonna be Creekfang," Creekkit meowed. "And Oakkit is gonna be Oakbranch."

"We don't know that," Oakkit told her littermate.

"Yeah, we do!"

"We used those names for games, Creekkit."

"So? Warrior names are warrior names!"

"What about mentors?" Brackenkit asked.

"I want Miststar!" Riverkit immediately claimed.

Oakkit shook her head. "Miststar was Brokenpaw's mentor. If he's not a warrior by then, then Miststar will go back to being his mentor." Riverkit's ears flattened.

"But she's always so busy with Frostfang," Riverkit complained. "We  _never_  get to see her."

"Maybe Frostfang will be your mentor?" Creekkit suggested. "You  _are_  Miststar's kit, after all."

Riverkit blinked. "Maybe…" she mewed. Silence spread across the three kits, and Gracekit yawned.

"I'm bored," she complained. "I'm going ahead," she decided, rising to her paws and padding off into the snowy forest.

"Gracekit, wait for me!" Riverkit called, bounding after her littermate. Not wanting to be left behind, Brackenkit quickly followed after his sisters. Creekkit stood, but his injured leg locked and he fell to the ground as soon as he tried to move it. Oakkit stood at her brother's side, her ears twitching.

She looked at the direction that the kits had gone in. She couldn't just leave Creekkit alone, but she also didn't want to leave the not even one moon old kits out in the middle of NorthClan territory.

The three kits were her friends.

But Creekkit was her brother.

But the three kits were young.

And Creekkit couldn't move.

She looked at Creekkit, and at the forest. In the snow, she could see the tiny pawprints that Gracekit, Riverkit, and Brackenkit left behind. She looked back at Creekkit, who was struggling to get to his paws again, but failed to. With a sigh, she sat down. She couldn't leave her brother alone.

"What're you doing?" Creekkit hissed. "Go after them!"

"I can't leave you alone!" Oakkit growled back. "They're in a group, they should be fine, right?" she meowed, but her voice shook as she said it.

"They don't know the territory!"

"We don't, either!" Resolutely, Oakkit sat down and looked at her brother. "We'll just have to wait for them to come back or for warriors to find them."

* * *

While Oakkit was waiting, she watched the stars. Some were brighter than others- Oakkit wondered if those were more important cats, or if they were just the newer StarClan warriors. The sky itself was in shades of black and purple, and seemingly thousands of stars coated the sky.

Tanglewhisper had said that life was hard for them. Oakkit believed it. She narrowed her eyes as she stared at one, bright star.  _Was that there a heartbeat ago?_  she wondered.

It wasn't until a patrol of warriors had come crashing through the underbrush that she got her answer. That star  _hadn't_  been there a heartbeat ago. And that star represented Riverkit.

She was told that she had fell into a river. She was told that Miststar had taken Brackenkit and Gracekit back to camp with Riverkit's body to hold vigil. She followed the warriors back to camp, walking next to the one who held Creekkit in his jaws. She didn't get any sleep that night, and went to see Creekkit the next morning.

"Do you want to see if Brokenpaw will train us?" she asked quietly. A feeling of depression hung over camp, and she didn't want to break it by speaking too loudly.

Creekkit shook his head. "I…" he began. "I'm fine with being Featherripple's apprentice."

Oakkit blinked. Once. Twice. "What?"

"I don't mind being a Medicine Cat, Oakkit," the tom meowed. He purred. "Just you wait, I'll be the best Medicine Cat in the five Clans."

* * *

_The forest around her was dark. Long, threatening shadows covered the ground. Towering above the rest of the trees was an oak tree. With long, thick branches and leaves the greenest she'd ever seen, Oakkit sat in awe as she stared up at the beautiful tree. The stars above her glittered, giving only the barest amount of light to the snow that dusted over the ground._

" _Stay out of the shadows, Oakkit,"_   _a familiar voice whispered._

_Her ears perked at the sound of flowing water. She had been warned away from water- in the North, cats didn't know how to swim, and falling in during the cold season could lead to a short and cold death. She turned her head to see a quickly-moving river passing by the large oak tree._

" _Stay out of the shadows," a familiar voice repeated._

_The ground was cold and dark. She knew that she wasn't supposed to go near water, but she felt pulled towards the river, anyway. Slowly, pawstep by pawstep, she creeped towards the water. She looked over the lip of earth at the cold, cold water- water that she was sure was supposed to be frozen over, but wasn't. She could see two cats in the water. One, she could recognize, the name on the tip of her tongue, but she couldn't completely recognize them. The second was unfamiliar. They were larger than her, and they had black fur._

" _Stay out of the shadows, Oakkit." The voice came from behind her._

_She turned on her heels, expecting to see a large, muscular shadow of a cat, but instead saw a familiar face with stars in her fur. Her blue-gray and brown fur was well-groomed, and her green eyes carried a new light of wisdom that they never had before._

" _River_ _kit?" she asked._

_Riverkit was silent for a heartbeat. For another. Then, with a flick of her starry ear, she spoke, and it sounded like hundreds of other cats were speaking with her._

" _When shadows threaten the forest, one tree will tower above the rest and reach for the light. But, when night surrenders to day, remember the river before it runs dry."_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun Fact- Riverkit's name was originally Aspenkit.


	11. Chapter Nine

_"They have raised you to be the Queen of Ashes."_

She wanted to go back south. She wanted a warm nest, with cats spreading her six-moon-old name in hushed whispers coated in fear. She wanted that power. She wanted that fear. The north, she realized, was just as deadly, if not more so, than her. It was no  _fun_. Every cat they came across, while just as dead as the ones from the south, had put up a fight that just made them  _irritated_.

The group paused as the King raised his tail. "Do you smell that?" he asked. Cats raised their heads, opened their muzzles, and sniffed the air around them. "Cats," the King meowed, his tail flicking. "And lots of them. Lots and lots of them."

Excitement curled itself in her belly. Adreneline flooded her veins. The thought of so many cats, just waiting to be torn apart? It made a purr want to break itself free from her chest, but she knew better. You never purred in front of the King.

"These cats will fear the Shadows!" the King yowled. The cats behind them let out a victory cheer, their voices splitting open the carefully crafted silence.

"You," the King meowed in a softer tone. She dipped her head to the tom, not meeting his eyes from her place at his side. "You and the other young will have a moon to train. Then, we attack."

"Yes, father," she meowed, her claws itching to unsheathe themselves.  _Just wait,_  she thought.  _I can kill them soon enough._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thus, ends the Kithood Chronicles for Dance With Shadows. I'm still working on Oakkit's apprenticeship, but hopefully it'll be out soon! I'm kinda going through a writer's block at the moment though, so it'll be out sooner than I'd like.


	12. Chapter Ten

_"She would make herself a reckoning, she would rise."_

Many things had changed since Riverkit died.  For one, Miststar was colder.  Tanglewhisper had told Oakkit and Creekkit in a hushed tone once that she was acting like that because she couldn’t show the Clan, and especially not the other Clans, that she was sad.  She only showed a soft side towards Brackenkit and Gracekit, and even then it was rare.

Creekkit had been spending more time in the Medicine Den.  While he had been spending time with Oakkit still, a lot of his time had gone towards Featherripple.  

And Oakkit kept having that _dream_ .  It was getting annoying by now- Creekkit constantly spoke of his dreams of catching hares and mice in the snowy forest.  Why couldn’t _she_ have a dream like that? Why couldn’t Riverkit give her a night off from that stupid prophecy? At the thought of it, it replayed itself through her head once again- _When shadows threaten the forest, one tree will tower above the rest and reach for the light.  But, when night surrenders to day, remember the river before it runs dry._

At first, it had seemed like something fun to figure out.  How would shadows threaten a forest? How could a tree reach for light? What river? Now, after the hundredth time of hearing it, Oakkit would happily rip her ears off if she had to hear it again.

“Why’re you looking like that?” Creekkit asked, tilting his head in confusion.  “We’re becoming apprentices today!” he added, his tail twitching.

The two kits had grown a lot.  While most of their kit fluff had left, some of it remained around their ears.  Their fur was, of course, still fluffy due to the need to stay warm.  Both of them had been groomed to perfection by Tanglewhisper, and sent to sit patiently in front of the Spirit Tree and wait for Miststar to start their ceremony.

Creekkit’s tortoiseshell fur had developed a clear pattern, one that constantly laid itself out through his fur.  His green eyes were bright with enthusiasm.  His body was broad, with wide shoulders and paws that would have made him a perfect warrior.  His hind leg was still covered in scars, and he still walked with a limp.

Oakkit’s tabby fur had developed a clearer, more wavy pattern than the blurry one it once had.  She had grown into her paws, but her tail was still long and whip thin.  Her amber eyes had become darker, and she had grown more slender.  

Carefully, Oakkit wrapped her tail around her paws.  “I know,” she meowed.  “I’m just thinking.”

“About?” Creekkit urged, before his green eyes narrowed.  “Is this about me becoming Featherripple’s apprentice, again?”

Quickly, Oakkit shook her head.  “No, no,” she meowed.  Truly, she had come to terms with that.  While it was hard for her to accept at first, she gradually understood Creekkit’s want to help cats in his own way.  She searched for an answer, and found one in her thoughts from the night before.  “We’ve been waiting for this since we knew what an apprentice was, and our ceremony is nothing like we pictured.”

Creekkit thought for a heartbeat, before he purred.  “It’s better,” he meowed, smiling.  Oakkit couldn’t help but give him a soft smile of her own.

“May all cats strong enough to catch their own prey, gather here beneath the Spirit Tree for a Clan Meeting!” Miststar yowled.  The young cats sat ramrod straight, their eyes focused on their leader.  Slowly, but surely, the cats of NorthClan gathered around the soon-to-be apprentices.

“Cats of NorthClan,” Miststar began.  “Today, we welcome to new cats to the path of a Northern cat.  May they be blessed with strength and wisdom in their survival.”  She nodded in the direction of the Medicine Den.  Cats parted to lead the ginger tom that was Featherripple pad through their ranks, and he slowed to a stop at the bottom of the Spirit Tree.

“NorthClan,” he began.  “Situation and decision has determined that it is time for me to take on an apprentice.  Creekpaw is the cat who will be trained by my careful paws.”

“Creekpaw,” Miststar meowed, “do you accept the position of apprentice to Featherripple?”

“I do,” Creekpaw meowed.

“Then at the next Medicine Cat gathering, you must travel to the Moon Cave to be accepted by StarClan before the other Medicine Cats,” Featherripple meowed.

“The good wishes of all of NorthClan go with you,” the blue-gray she-cat meowed.  Creekpaw rose to his paws, and he touched noses with his new mentor.

“Oakkit, you have reached your sixth moon and it is time for you to be apprenticed.  From this moment on and until you earn your warrior name, you shall be known as Oakpaw.”  Miststar turned her eyes to the crowd.  “Tawnyrain, I believe that you are ready for your first apprentice.  You received excellent training from Rushriver and have proven yourself to be both an excellent fighter and clever.  I expect you to teach her everything that you know.”  Oakpaw turned her head to look at a she-cat padding out of the crowd and dipping her head to their leader, before padding up to Oakpaw.  

Tawnyrain was a black and gray tabby, with a gray muzzle, ears, and tail.  Her chest and belly were black.  Her eyes were a bright green, and held a sparkle of kindness that made Oakpaw think that she would make a good mentor.  The two touched noses, and padded into the crowd as they started cheering.  

_“Creekpaw! Oakpaw! Creekpaw! Oakpaw!”_

“Follow me,” Tawnyrain meowed, flicking an ear.  She padded towards the entrance of camp with her new apprentice on her heels.  

“Oakpaw!” a voice called.  She hesitated, looking over her shoulder to see Creekpaw with his new mentor and their parents.  He flicked his tail- a silent way of saying _come here_.  She looked back at Tawnyrain, who wasn’t even slowing her stride.

“Sorry, Creekpaw,” she called back to him.  “I’ll see you when I get back!” She bounded after her mentor and easily fell into stride with the older she-cat.  

They padded through the woods without speaking.  The forest was silent, apart from them.  A fresh coat of snow covered the ground from last night’s snowfall, making Tawnyrain and Oakpaw’s pawprints the first to tarnish it.  Finally, Tawnyrain broke the silence.

“We’re going to be learning how to hunt today,” she meowed.

Oakpaw tilted her head.  “Meadowpaw told me that Mountainfrost gave her a tour of the territory first,” she meowed.

Tawnyrain shook her head.  “That is for a different day,” she meowed.  “Once you become an apprentice, it’s your duty to help feed the Clan.  You can’t eat until you’ve fed the Clan, and you’ll be punished if you don’t bring anything home.  So, before we learn to fight, or learn the territory, we will become masters at hunting.”  Oakpaw nodded, determined to be the best student she could for her mentor.  “Show me your best hunting crouch.”

Oakpaw crouched, her long tail straight and her paws evenly placed.  Her ears perked as she listened to the crunch of snow, indicating that her mentor was circling around her.  “Your hindpaws are too far forward,” she meowed.  Quickly, Oakpaw adjusted.  “Now, you’re off balance.”

They continued.  Tawnyrain pointed out every flaw that Oakpaw had in her hunting crouch, until she deemed it perfect.  The younger tabby watched as her mentor sat back on her haunches in front of her.  “Now, stay there for a while.  Let your muscles remember the position for you.”

Instead of staying silent, Tawnyrain spoke more.  She told her about the different animals they hunted, and the different ways of hunting them.  Hares, you had to hunt silently due to their sensitive hearing.  Mice you had to hunt lightly, because of their sensitive whiskers.  Squirrels, though rare, you had to hunt down wind, because of their sensitive noses.  

“Try stalking,” Tawnyrain answered.  “Stalk like you would hunt a hare.”  Carefully, Oakpaw lifted a paw, then set it down as quietly as possible.  She repeated the process, again and again, going in circles, until Tawnyrain was satisfied.  “Stalk like you would hunt a mouse,” she ordered.  She placed a paw down lightly, but her mentor shook her head.  “All your weight is was in your paw.  Try again.”

They continued, failure after failure, until finally, success.  Then a failure, then a success, success, success.  The successes continued, until Tawnyrain ordered her to stop.  

“Stalking a squirrel is like stalking a rabbit, just downwind,” she explained.  She rose to her paws, shaking out her pelt.  “You aren’t a master at something until you’ve done it ten thousand times, and you’ll never know for sure until you’ve tried it.”  She flicked her tail.  “Follow me.  Let’s find some prey to test you on.”  Happily, Oakpaw stood and followed her mentor deeper into the forest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A chapter for a day I felt needed it. I'm still working on the rest of Oakpaw's apprenticeship, but it's turning out pretty well... in my nothing but humble opinion, of course.


	13. Chapter Eleven

_"I don't want to be soft anymore.  I want to be bloody claws and sharp fangs and I want cats to be afraid of hurting me."_

Tawnyrain was patient and calm, but strict.  She had set her mind to the fact that Oakpaw wouldn’t be going back to camp until she had caught her first prey, and she didn’t let up on that.

The sun was setting, Oakpaw’s paws were sore, she kept yawning, and she had missed two hares already.  Still, Tawnyrain pressed on, continuously sniffing the air and urging her apprentice to do the same.  Her paws dragged across the snow, leaving long tracks in her wake.  Tawnyrain paused, using her tail to block Oakpaw’s path.  “You can catch this one,” she whispered.  “Remember, stay light on your paws.”  

Oakpaw nodded, falling into the hunter’s crouch for the fourth time that day.  She focused her weight on her haunches, creeping forward in the direction of the mouse.  Once she deemed that she was close enough, she pounced.  She prepared herself for failure, but was surprised to feel a soft, warm body under her paws.  She ducked her head to bite at its neck- the sweet taste of its blood filled her mouth and the mouse fell limp.

She lifted her head with the mouse in her jaws.  A new energy fueled her as a purr rose in her throat.  She looked back at the tabby behind her.  Tawnyrain had a small smile on her face.  “That’s a fat one,” she praised.  “Well done.  We still have to get my catch, though.”  Oakpaw nodded, holding her head high as her mentor padded through the forest. 

It didn’t take Tawnyrain long to find her prey, and she caught her hare with more ease than Oakpaw caught her mouse.  With their prey in their jaws, the two she-cats padded towards camp.  The young tabby’s head was still held high, but the energy that the catch had given her was quickly fading.

The journey towards camp felt shorter than when the two had left.  Maybe it was because the two had wandered the territory, but Oakpaw didn’t really have the time to think about it before she was stopped at the entrance of camp by Creekpaw.  

“Oakpaw, you’re back!” he meowed.  “I was getting wor- did you catch that?” Oakpaw nodded, the feeling of pride filling her as her ear flicked.  

“Go put that on the fresh kill pile,” Tawnyrain meowed around her hare, “and get something for yourself.  We’ll be leaving at dawn tomorrow.”  Oakpaw nodded to her mentor, and padded towards the fresh kill pile next to her littermate.  She set down her mouse.  

“Have you eaten yet?” she asked.  Creekpaw gave her a sheepish look.

“Sorry,” he meowed.  “I think that Meadowpaw was waiting for you, though.  Featherripple wanted me to go back to the den once you got back.”  Oakpaw nodded.

“What did you learn today?” she asked.

“Just some herbs,” he told her.  “It was kinda boring.  I get to leave camp in a few days, though!” The tom’s tail flicked.  “I have to go.  See you, Oakpaw!” The tom turned around, making his way back towards the Medicine Den.  She turned her head back towards the fresh kill pile, picking up a hare and padding towards the apprentice’s den.  There, laying outside, she saw Meadowpaw, curled up with her head on her forepaws.  Drowsily, the the light brown she-cat lifted her head.

“Oh, hey, Oakpaw,” she meowed.  “Tawnyrain finally brought you back to camp?” she asked.  Oakpaw nodded, setting down the hare in between their forepaws.  

“Creekpaw said you waited for me,” she meowed.  Meadowpaw tilted her head as she looked at the prey.  

“You caught something?” she asked.  Oakpaw nodded.

“That’s why it took so long.”  The older she-cat took a bite of the hare, and spoke in between chews.

“What happened? What did she teach you?”

“She taught me how to hunt, and we didn’t come back until I caught a mouse,” Oakpaw explained, taking a bite of the hare herself.  

“Well, you’ll be happy to know that Brokenpaw and I made a nest for you,” Meadowpaw purred.  “Tawnyrain sounds like a strict mentor.”

“Thank you,” the tabby meowed, dipping her head.  “She said that we’re leaving at dawn tomorrow.”  Meadowpaw shook her head.

“You’re gonna need the strength of the whole Clan,” she meowed.  The two she-cats quickly finished the hare then padded into the apprentice’s den.  

“Good night, Meadowpaw,” Oakpaw meowed.  The brown-furred she-cat smiled.

“Night, Oakpaw,” she purred, padding towards her nest.  Oakpaw padded towards the only open nest- one that was between the entrance of the den and Coalpaw’s nest.  She fell into the nest and fell asleep almost immediately, preparing for Riverkit’s voice to repeat itself over and over in her head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another chapter for a day that, I at the very least, needed it.


	14. Chapter Twelve

_"I hope you find a way to be yourself someday, in weakness or in strength."_

Hunting was hard.  It was patience and intelligence and agility all in one, and it took days for Oakpaw to be able to catch a hare as easily as Tawnyrain had on her first day of training.  But, eventually, the apprentice reached a standard of hunting that Tawnyrain thought was good enough for the pair to go on a tour of the territory- a territory that Oakpaw had already mostly seen, but she was excited for a break from the days of continuous hunting.

“All five Clans have a large territory,” Tawnyrain explained.  “You’ve been almost everywhere in the territory, but today you’ll see the whole thing.”  The older tabby looked over her shoulder at her apprentice.  “Don’t think that this gives you an excuse from not hunting.  If you don’t catch anything before we go back to camp, you won’t be eating tonight, and you’ll be punished.”  

“Yes, Tawnyrain,” Oakpaw meowed, her tail flicking behind her.  The warrior nodded, looking back in front of her.  

“You know what would happen if you fell into the river, don’t you?” she asked.  

Oakpaw shivered, but not from the cold.  The image of Riverkit’s vigil flashed in her mind- her fur had become spikey, and was darkened from the water.  It looked as if it had frosted from the cold- even though Gracekit and Brackenkit had tried their best, Riverkit had died before the two inexperienced kits could get the water out of her fur.  

“Yeah,” Oakpaw mewed quietly.  

“Well, we’re going there,” Tawnyrain told her.  “It marks our border with SnowClan, and then goes into FreezeClan territory.  The river is the reason we don’t have too much trouble with SnowClan, even though they’re right next to us.”

“I heard that Riverstone and Somberheart could swim,” Oakpaw meowed.  “And that a cat called Redrain can, too.”

Her mentor nodded.  “That’s true,” she said.  “But they can’t go swimming alone- they need cats to help them dry off fast enough.”  The older cat leapt onto a fallen tree, flicking her tail in a silent signal for her apprentice to join her.  Oakpaw bunched her muscles and leapt, landing easily on the tree in front of her.  Her claws dug into the wood under her, keeping her stable as her tail lashed from side to side.

A fox length away from the fallen tree was the river, and beyond the river, the young tabby could see an approaching patrol.  “Shouldn’t we leave?” Oakpaw asked.  “They might think we’re about to trespass.”

Tawnyrain shook her head.  “We have a good relationship with SnowClan,” she meowed.  “In fact, I think I know some of those cats.”  Oakpaw was nervous, but she sat up straight like her mentor was doing.  Her tail, dangling off of the tree, swung from side to side below her.  The cats in the distance got larger and larger, until they were across the river from the two she-cats.

The leader of the patrol was a long legged, dark gray tom.  His muzzle was shorter than most, and his eyes were a blue-gray color.  Next to him was a smaller tom- his long fur was gray (apart from his black ears and tail tip).  His eyes were hazel, and his ear flicked as he looked at the two NorthClan cats.  Behind the two toms was brown tabby she-cat.  White spots covered her muzzle, and the same color was on her belly.  Her eyes were a bright amber.

“Tawnyrain,” the dark gray tom greeted, before his eyes landed onto the younger tabby.  “Who’s this?”

The she-cat’s ears flicked.  “Did you finally get yourself an apprentice?”

Tawnyrain nodded.  “I did.  This is Oakpaw, I’m showing her the territory.”  At the sound of her name, Oakpaw dipped her head to the SnowClan patrol.  “Oakpaw, these are Stormrunner-” the tom waved his tail, “Fawnstep-” the she-cat dipped her head, “and Stormrunner’s apprentice, Graypaw.”

“I’m sure she’ll become a great warrior,” Stormrunner praised.  “Granted that she works for it, of course.”

“She’s already shaping into a good hunter,” Tawnyrain informed.

“You taught her how to hunt before showing her the territory?” Fawnstep asked, folding her ear back in confusion.  Tawnyrain nodded.

“That’s how I was taught,” she meowed.

Graypaw faked a small shudder, and mouthed ‘sorry’ to the other apprentice.  The corners of Oakpaw’s mouth twitched as she suppressed a purr, but she flicked her ear in acknowledgement of the comment.  The tom smiled at her from across the river, before turning his attention back to his mentor.  

“We should get going,” Fawnstep meowed to Stormrunner.  The older tom nodded, dipping his head to the two NorthClan cats.

“Goodbye Tawnyrain,” he meowed.  

“Goodbye Stormrunner, Fawnstep,” Tawnyrain mewed.  

The SnowClan patrol continued along the border, but Graypaw stayed behind for a heartbeat, his eyes moving from the two warriors towards Oakpaw.  Tawnyrain rose to her paws and turned around, leaping off the tree and padding deeper into NorthClan territory.  Oakpaw was about to follow her mentor, but Graypaw stopped her.  “See you at a Gathering?” the SnowClan tom asked.

Oakpaw nodded.  “Yeah,” she agreed.

“Oakpaw!” Tawnyrain called.  The young tabby dipped her head to Graypaw, before leaping off the tree after her mentor.  As she raced after her mentor, she could have sworn that she heard the tom call “good luck, Oakpaw” after her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shit has been going down in my family lately. If you're in the same boat as me, I hope you enjoyed the chapter and it got you out of your own head for a little while.


	15. Chapter Thirteen

_"Let me go, I don't want to be your hero."_

For the first time since Oakpaw had started her training, she failed to catch something before her and Tawnyrain went back to camp.  She did find a mouse, but she missed the catch.  Tawnyrain hadn’t looked disappointed, or ashamed- instead she caught her own mouse and led the way towards camp.  Before they entered, the older tabby paused, using her tail to stop her apprentice.

Tawnyrain set the mouse at her paws, and turned her green eyes to Oakpaw.  “This is the first time you’ve come back to camp without a catch,” she meowed, “and it won’t be the last.  Have you ever seen what happens to cats who come back to camp without a catch?”

Oakpaw shook her head.  “Tanglewhisper never let us see,” she told her.

“Unfortunately, you’re about to find out,” her mentor meowed.  “Just know that every other cat, even Miststar, has gone through it.”  Tawnyrain picked up her mouse in her jaws before she led the way into camp.  

She paused in the center of camp, watching as Tawnyrain placed her mouse at the fresh kill pile before she padded towards the nursery, avoiding the playing Brackenkit and Gracekit.  

“Oakpaw!” the young tabby turned her head towards Creekpaw.  The tom was sitting next to Featherripple, waving his tail.  A few different herbs were spread out at their paws.  He looked up at his mentor and asked something, to which the Medicine Cat nodded in response.  The tortoiseshell rose to his paws and limped towards the other apprentice.  “What’d you do today?” he asked cheerfully.

“Tawnyrain showed me the territory,” she meowed.  “I met some SnowClan cats.”

“Really?” Creekpaw’s eyes shined.  “Who?”

“Stormrunner, Fawnstep, and Graypaw,” she let out a small purr, “Graypaw and I agreed to meet at a Gathering.”

“You’ll introduce me, right?” the medicine cat apprentice asked.  Oakpaw nodded.  “Oh, you know what _I_ found out today?” Creekpaw looked proud of himself as he said it.

“What?” Oakpaw asked.

“There’s no such thing as water herbs,” he told her.  “Featherripple says that Riverstone is crazy.”

“Oakpaw!” she snapped her head in the direction that her name was called- Miststar, Tawnyrain, and the Clan’s deputy, Frostfang, were standing in front of the Spirit Tree.  She flicked her ear in goodbye to her littermate, bounding towards the three cats.

Frostfang was a cat that she hadn’t seen much.  Usually, he would sort out patrols (and go on his own), and make sure that every cat who had or couldn’t contributed got their fair share of fresh kill.  He would also help guard the pile, to make sure that no cat would take fresh kill that they didn’t deserve.  His fur was gray, with a white chest, muzzle, and paws, and his eyes were blue.  

“Tawnyrain told us that you didn’t catch anything,” Miststar meowed.  “Is that true?”

Oakpaw swallowed, but nodded.  “Yes, Miststar,” she meowed quietly.

Frostfang slowly turned his blue eyes from Oakpaw to Miststar slowly.  “Miststar, go easy on her,” he urged.  “It’s the first time that she hasn’t brought prey back, and Tawnyrain has been turning her into a good hunter.”

“All the reason to go harsher, Frostfang,” Miststar argued.  “I haven’t given any apprentice an easy punishment before, and I won’t start now.”  With that, the leader lifted a paw.  Sharp claws were unsheathed, and before Oakpaw knew it they had stuck her shallowly across her face.  She could feel warm, tiny drops of blood come out of the stinging wound, but they didn’t fall down her face.  “You won’t be treated, or eat anything tonight, either.  Now, leave us,” Miststar meowed.  Oakpaw quickly turned and rushed off, her ears and head held low.

“Oakpaw!” Creekpaw meowed, forcing his littermate to stop by placing himself in front of her.  “Are you okay? What was that for?” Glancing up at him, she could see that he was suppressing the urge to send a glare towards their leader.

“I didn’t catch anything,” Oakpaw told him.  

“Well, I know how to treat you! I-”

“You can’t,” she interrupted.  “It’s part of the punishment.”

Creekpaw looked sheepish, but he nodded.  “Well, how about something to eat? That would make you feel better!”

“I didn’t catch anything,” she repeated.

Creekpaw lowered his ears and let out a small groan.  “I hate this punishment.”  

Oakpaw gave her littermate a soft purr.  “I’ll be fine, Creekpaw,” she meowed.  “If I couldn’t handle this, how could I be a warrior?”

The tom thought for a heartbeat.  “I guess,” he mewed.  “But I’m not happy about it!”

Oakpaw felt her stomach grumble from hunger, and looked around camp.  Many warriors were eating- and so were Brokenpaw and Coalpaw.  “I think I’m going to go to sleep.  Goodnight, Creekpaw,” she mewed.

“Night, Oakpaw,” he responded.  She flicked her tail at him as she padded towards the apprentice’s den, slipping inside and curling up inside her own nest.

* * *

_She opened her eyes, staring at a snow covered ground.  She didn’t look up.  She knew what she would find.  She didn’t want to see it._

_“Stay out of the shadows, Oakpaw.”_

_She dug her claws into the soft ground hidden under the snow and gritted her teeth.  “Leave me alone, Riverkit.”_

_The sound of the river entered her ears.  She didn’t want to look.  She was tired._

_“Stay out of the shadows.”_

_“Riverkit, please,” Oakpaw pleaded.  “Just let me sleep.”_

_“Stay out of the shadows, Oakpaw.”_

_“Stop it!” she yowled, finally looking up at her old friend with tears in her eyes.  Riverkit looked impassive- something that disturbed something deep inside of Oakpaw, but she couldn’t bring herself to care at the moment.  “Just let me go! I don’t want to be a part of some prophecy!”_

_Riverkit was silent for a few heartbeats, before she spoke._

_“When shadows threaten the forest, one tree will tower above the rest and reach for the light.  But when night surrenders to day, remember the river before it runs dry.”_


	16. Chapter Fourteen

_ "As long as I'm around, nothing bad is going to happen to you." _

A rabbit was sitting in front of Oakpaw’s paws.  Hunger ate at her stomach, but she knew better than to eat the fresh-kill.

“How do you hunt a rabbit?” Tawnyrain asked.

“Quietly,” Oakpaw answered.

“How do you hunt a mouse?”

“Lightly.”

“How do you hunt a squirrel?”

“Downwind.”

Tawnyrain nodded.  “Good,” she mewed.  “Bury that.  Today, you start your fighting training.”

Oakpaw nodded, jumping to her paws.  She picked up the hare in her jaws and dug up some of the snow until she reached the cold, hard earth underneath, placing the rabbit in the hole and pushing the snow back on top of it.  She padded back to her mentor, who was now standing in a small clearing not too far away from where the two were before.

“As you know, NorthClan is the strongest of the Northern Clans,” her mentor began to explain.  “Cats from the South, while larger than us, tend to be faster.  Their pelts are thinner, and they have less fur weighing them down.  Their largest cats are faster than us- even GlacierClan, the Clan farthest to the South, is the fastest Clan of the five.”

“So are we the slowest?” Oakpaw asked.

Tawnyrain shook her head.  “SnowClan is.  Their territory is covered in massive amounts of snow, and it clings to their fur, adding extra weight.  However, we are a Clan of slow moving cats, so our fighting strategy depends on using our enemies strengths against them and making sure that we can last for as long as we can.”

Oakpaw nodded, shifting her paws in excitement.  “First, though,” Tawnyrain meowed, “I’ll teach you the basics of fighting.  You’ll be learning to dodge, today.”

The warrior shot out a paw, cuffing it around Oakpaw’s ears before she could duck her head.  “I’ve seen you and Creekpaw fight when you were kits,” she mewed, “I know you can do better than that.”  Tawnyrain lifted her paw again, starting to strike.  Oakpaw lowered her head quickly, but Tawnyrain’s paw still brushed against the top of her ears.  

“Try again,” her mentor commanded.  The apprentice lifted up her head, waiting for Tawnyrain’s paw, and dipping her head down even further when the warrior struck.  She could feel the air moving above her head.  Oakpaw lifted her head once again, only to duck back down as fast as she could when Tawnyrain attacked with her other paw.  She could feel the paw miss her ears, making the air shift above them.

“Good job,” Tawnyrain praised.

Slowly, Oakpaw lifted her head.  “Do you think I’d be able to win at a Gathering, Tawnyrain?”

“Not yet,” her mentor meowed, “but you will, someday.  I think the better question is if you’ll going to the next Gathering.”

The apprentice nodded- the Clans were strict, and apprentices had to earn their way to go to the Gatherings.  Of course, Creekpaw would probably be going to every Gathering, as he was training to be the Medicine Cat, but it was almost a guarantee that Oakpaw wouldn’t be going to the next one.  The full moon was approaching quickly, and she had only just started her training.

“However,” Tawnyrain mewed, lifting a paw and striking, only to miss her apprentice as she ducked, “you’re learning quickly.  If Miststar is impressed with your pace, she may take you to the Gathering.”  Happily, Oakpaw nodded.

* * *

“You look tired, Oakpaw,” Brokenpaw mewed as the youngest warrior apprentice laid down next to him.  Her ears twitched at his comment.

“I  _ am _ tired,” Oakpaw mewed, her whole head moving as she spoke as it rested on her paws.

“What did Tawnyrain have you do?” Coalpaw asked, his head tilted.

“Battle training.”

Meadowpaw pushed a mouse towards her.  “Eat,” she ordered, her voice strangely strict.  “Now that you’ve started battle training, Frostfang might start putting you on patrols.”

“She just started,” Brokenpaw argued.  “She’s not going to be on patrols anytime soon.”

“Well, training is even worse if you’re tired,” Meadowpaw meowed as she shrugged her shoulders.

Coalpaw nudged Oakpaw’s shoulder gently with his paw.  “Hey, looks like we both have the strict mentors,” he purred.

Oakpaw lifted her head, her ear folding backwards in confusion as she looked at the older apprentice.  “Willowfang doesn’t seem that bad,” she mewed.

“You’ve obviously never spoken to her,” Meadowpaw joked. 

“The only cat she’s nice to is Coalpaw,” Brokenpaw added.  The black tom flicked an ear.

“She cares about me, that’s all,” he meowed.

“You two are best friends!” the other tom argued.  “The rest of us get the sharp end of the stick.”

Oakpaw tilted her head, turning to look at Brokenpaw.  “Your mentor used to be Miststar,” she mewed.  “Wasn’t she strict?”

“Well, she was, but…” he trailed off for a heartbeat.  “You remember how she was before Riverkit died.”

Sadly, Oakpaw nodded.  “Yeah,” she murmured, looking back at her still-uneaten mouse.

Breaking the sad tension between Brokenpaw and Oakpaw, Meadowpaw groaned.  “Come  _ on _ Oakpaw, do I have to force you to eat that?” she asked.

The younger she-cat, feeling as if she was a kit again and was being scolded by Tanglewhisper, quickly shook her head and took a bite of her mouse.

“Better,” Meadowpaw meowed, relaxing and holding her head high from her small victory.

“Who are you now, her mother?” Coalpaw asked.

“I could be,” the older she-cat shot back to the tom.  
“I’m fine with Tanglewhisper, thank you.”  The other apprentices let out a ‘mrow’ of amusement, making Oakpaw’s ears warm in embarrassment.


	17. Chapter Fifteen

_ "And she would bow to no one." _

An annoyed groan came from the other side of the clearing as the she-cat was thrown across it.  Her black fur was clumped with melted and unmelted snow, and her green eyes were filled with frustration.

A full-grown, black tom stopped in front of her as she climbed to her paws.  “How many times have I shown you this move, Nettle?” he asked in a growl.

“Twice,” Nettle meowed, lifting her head to look at the tom in his blue eyes.  The rest of the cats, both her age and moons older, were staring at their own paws, refusing to look at the tom’s anger-filled face.

“And when should you have mastered it?”

“The first time I tried.”  

“And where should you be looking?” the tom smirked as he spoke.

Nettle’s eyes narrowed.  “Don’t forget that my mother is dead now, Ash,” she growled.  “And that I’m the only daughter of your King.  Do you know what that makes me?”

Ash sneered.  “You’re only Queen until one of your brothers gets a mate,” he meowed.  

“Unless I get one first,” Nettle reminded.

Ash ignored her.  “And, for now, I’m your Trainer, which makes me superior.”

“ _ I’m _ the superior one,” Nettle growled.  “As your Queen, you’ll respect me.  As your Trainee, you’ll teach me, not scold me.”

Ash’s face soured.  “Night!” he snapped.  The tom with blue eyes and gray strands of fur in his pelt rose to his paws, but didn’t look up.  “Spar with Nettle until she gets the move right.  I don’t care how long it takes."


	18. Chapter Sixteen

_"Terrible things happen to good people every day. Consequently, I am not one of the good people. I am one of the terrible things."_

Oakpaw's ears flicked as she dodged the attack that was thrown her way. When she landed, she had to catch her balance- wasted time that her opponent took advantage of. She barreled into her side, knocking the air out of her lungs and making her fall into the soft snow that covered the ground.

"You have to stay on your paws, Oakpaw," Tawnyrain reminded. "That's what NorthClan cats are best at."

"Yes, Tawnyrain," the apprentice meowed, climbing back to her paws and shaking out her fur. "I want to try again."

Her mentor purred. "Good. Get back into position." Quickly, Oakpaw complied with the older tabby's orders.

A few days had passed, and many more training sessions had ensued. According to Tawnyrain, Oakpaw was starting to turn into an impressive fighter. With narrowed eyes and tense muscles, the young tabby crouched and watched as her mentor rushed towards her. She leapt backwards, like she had before, but had no need to catch her balance this time. Instead, when Tawnyrain attempted to rush at her from the side, she lifted a paw and struck her across the muzzle. While her mentor was pretending to be dazed- as she had explained a cat would be in a real fight- Oakpaw sweeped her forelegs out from under her.

With a satisfied look on her face, the older tabby got to her paws and sat. "Much better," she praised, before she turned her head upwards, towards the sky. "Go and hunt before you head back to camp," she meowed. Oakpaw dipped her head to the older she-cat before she bounded out of the clearing, her senses alert for prey.

Her tail flicked as she weaved between the snow-clad trees, her paws dipping silently into the snow. She paused, watching as a group of cats pushed their way out of the undergrowth.

The cat at the head of the patrol was a familiar, dark brown she-cat with yellow eyes. Stagfur blinked at the lone apprentice, tilting her head. Behind her stood Meadowpaw and her mentor, Mountainfrost- a light brown tom with darker patches, white spots and a matching tail, and a pair of gray-brown eyes. Meadowpaw smiled at her, waving her tail in greeting. Beside Mountainfrost and Meadowpaw was a pure black, sleek-furred she-cat with dark amber eyes named Ravenstone, who was carrying a hare in her jaws.

"Oakpaw?" Stagfur asked, her eyes narrowed. "What are you doing here? Where's Tawnyrain?"

"She told me to hunt before I went back to camp," Oakpaw told her.

"Why don't you join us?" Mountainfrost suggested before looking at Stagfur. "We could use another hunter."

"I don't see why not," Stagfur meowed, flicking her tail. "Come on, Oakpaw, let's go," the she-cat ordered. The apprentice nodded, falling into step next to Ravenstone. For a moment, she bounded forward so she padded next to Meadowpaw.

"Where are we going?" she asked.

"To the DraftClan border," Meadowpaw murmured to her. "Then we'll double back." Oakpaw nodded, falling back next to than black-furred warrior.

Oakpaw sniffed the air, the scent of a mouse filling her nose. Quickly, she dropped into a crouch, and she heard more than saw the rest of the patrol stop and watch her pull herself forward on light paws. She waited in place for a heartbeat before she pounced, her paws landing on the mouse and pinning it to the ground. She dipped her head and bit down on the back of its neck, feeling as it went limp. She lifted her head and padded back to the patrol, head held high with pride from her catch.

"Good catch!" Stagfur praised with a purr. Mountainfrost nodded in agreement, a small smile on his face. Oakpaw happily joined the rest of the patrol, padding after Meadowpaw and Mountainfrost.

"Has Tawnyrain taught you about distance hunting, yet?" Mountainfrost asked as he looked at her over his shoulder. His dark eyes were filled with something that Oakpaw couldn't place. The apprentice shook her head.

Meadowpaw's head jerked upwards in excitement. "Can I show her?" she asked.

Stagfur shrugged her shoulders. "I'm fine with it as long as Mountainfrost is."

The tom seemed to hesitate for a heartbeat before responding. "When we get to the DraftClan border," he meowed. "If you're going to show it to her, you might as well show it to her the right way."

* * *

Oakpaw watched as Meadowpaw crouched, hidden in the undergrowth of NorthClan's forests. The scent of DraftClan was strong here- stronger than anywhere else. It was a scent that she recognized less from her tour of the territory and more from her meeting with Stonepaw on the day that Creekpaw had been injured. She couldn't remember that day well- only the whiteness of the fox's fur, the smell and the red of Creekpaw's blood, and the DraftClan scent that the apprentice carried.

"What is she hunting for?" Oakpaw whispered, looking up at Stagfur. "Aren't we too close to the DraftClan border to hunt?"

"You'll see," Stagfur whispered back. Oakpaw watched as her fellow apprentice leapt, landing just on the other side of the border that separated the Clans territories. She padded across the scent line a heartbeat later, a squirrel hanging from her jaws. Oakpaw felt her green eyes widen.

"What was that?" she asked. "We can't just hunt on DraftClan territory!"

"Quiet down," Ravenstone growled.

"Let's go," Stagfur meowed, rising to her paws. She led the way deeper into the territory, and stopped at a tree with a thick trunk. She turned her eyes to Oakpaw.

"Okay," Mountainfrost began, "ask whatever you want to ask."

"Why are we hunting on DraftClan territory?" Oakpaw asked. "It's  _DraftClan_  territory!"

"We need all the prey we can get," Ravenstone meowed, lifting a paw absently and beginning to groom it. "DraftClan always assumes that the wind blows our scent over the border."

Mountainfrost narrowed his eyes. "Because we tell them that, Ravenstone," he meowed.

"They're the ones stupid enough to believe it," Ravenstone growled.


	19. Chapter Seventeen

_"You may not be interested in war, but war is interested in you."_

"Oakpaw!" a voice called. The apprentice lifted her head, surprised to see Deerburr standing before her. "How has your training been?" he asked. "I haven't been able to see you as much as I have Creekpaw, since he's been in camp most of the time."

Oakpaw hesitated. "I learned about distance hunting today," she meowed. The kind and open look on her father's face fell, replaced with an almost sad look. He sat, curling his tail around his paws.

"Well, it was going to happen someday," he meowed, letting out a sigh. "Who showed you? Tawnyrain?"

Oakpaw shook her head. "Tawnyrain told me to go hunting before I went back to camp, and I ran into Stagfur's patrol. They had me join them, and Mountainfrost let Meadowpaw do it when we got to the DraftClan border."

"Well, it wouldn't happen on the SnowClan border, would it?" Deerburr's attempt at lightheartedness didn't work, but the apprentice offered him a purr anyways. "There are lower points of Clan life. You never heard the stories about distance hunting, did you?"

Oakpaw tilted her head. "Was I supposed to?"

"It was a story that the elders liked to tell me and my brothers," the warrior meowed. "Tanglewhisper and Miststar were never as fond of it was I was. They take the topic seriously, and although Miststar doesn't like it, she's never expressly forbidden it."

"Why not?"

"It's a way that we get prey," Deerburr meowed. "Desperately needed prey, might I add."

"So that makes it okay?" the apprentice could feel her anger starting to grow.

"No. Survival isn't always pretty or honorable, Oakpaw, but it  _is_  what all of us do." Deerburr adjusted himself, making himself more comfortable in front of his only daughter. "In the story that the elders told us, distance hunting happened to us from both DraftClan and SnowClan- it was in a time before the river was formed, which is a story all on its own."

"NorthClan and SnowClan were always fighting, but StarClan knew that we'd make better allies than enemies," Oakpaw began to recite. "They knew that we'd only get along from a distance, so they made the river."

Deerburr nodded. "Good," he praised. "Lionrock and Tigerfoot were never as fond of stories as you and Creekpaw are."

"But what about the rest of the distance hunting story?" Oakpaw pressed.

Her father let out a loud, rumbling purr. "Alright, alright. Don't rush me, Oakpaw," amusement leaked into his tone. "So, once we realized that both SnowClan and DraftClan were lying to us about their scent blowing onto our side of the border, we started fights with both of them- the fights that made StarClan make the river. Once the river was formed, and we had no more problems with SnowClan, we focused all of our attention onto DraftClan.

"We went deeper into their territory, fighting and hunting and claiming more land as we went. The story gets vague from there- either the DraftClan medicine cat received a sign or they just gave up. Either way, we returned their territory, continued distance hunting, and nothing has changed since."

"And DraftClan hasn't questioned it?"

Deerburr shook his head. "If they have, then Miststar and Frostfang have been keeping that to themselves."

Oakpaw blinked. "Featherripple might know," she meowed. "And if he knows, then I bet-"

"No," her father meowed sternly. "Creekpaw doesn't need to worry about it yet."

The apprentice was confused, but she didn't argue with her father.

* * *

"If you see Graypaw, can you tell him 'hello' for me?" Oakpaw asked.

Creekpaw nodded, a large smile on his face. "I will!  _And_  I'll brag about how well my sister is doing in her warrior training."

"Please don't."

Creekpaw laughed. "I'm gonna do it."

"Creekpaw!" Oakpaw had spoken at the same time as Featherripple.

"Gotta go, Oakpaw," the tortoiseshell meowed, turning on his heel and limping towards his mentor. He flicked his tail towards her.

"Don't brag about me!" Oakpaw called after him. She could see Creekpaw's shoulders shaking in laughter as he left camp with the rest of the cats going to the Gathering.

Gracekit let out a sigh as she padded up to her. "I'm going to miss him," she meowed. Oakpaw tilted her head in confusion.

"He'll be back by tomorrow morning," she meowed. "Shouldn't you be with Brackenkit in the nursery?"

Gracekit shrugged her shoulders. "I guess so," she meowed. "Littlenose is gone, too."

"So you two are alone in the nursery?" Oakpaw asked.

"I get the feeling that's not the best idea," Oakpaw turned her head to look at Coalpaw, who had stopped on Gracekit's other side.

"Maybe Miststar's been busy, and she didn't realize that both her and Littlenose are going to the Gathering," Oakpaw suggested.

Coalpaw shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe. But Gracekit and Brackenkit are going to spend the night in the apprentice's den."

Gracekit's ears perked. "Really?"

Coalpaw nodded. "Go get Brackenkit." The kit didn't waste her time, quickly rising to her paws and bounding towards the nursery. Oakpaw sent Coalpaw a questioning look. The other apprentice only shrugged his shoulders.

"They can sleep in Brokenpaw's nest."

* * *

"Wake up!" Creekpaw's voice yowled. He sounded panicked, but that barely registered in Oakpaw's tired mind.

She lifted up her head, drowsily blinking her eyes. "Wha?"

"Quiet down, Creekpaw," Coalpaw complained. Brackenkit let out a wordless groan, but Gracekit's eyes were already wide and on the medicine cat apprentice.

"Is that blood?" she asked. "Creekpaw, why are you bleeding?" Oakpaw jumped to her paws, sleepiness forgotten.

"Are you hurt?" she asked. "What Clan did this to you? What cat did it?"

"Not a Clan," Creekpaw meowed. "Rogues. They attacked the Gathering! Come on, we have to go!"

"But-" Oakpaw let out a growl, cutting off Coalpaw. Creekpaw wasted no time, rushing out of the den as fast as he could with Oakpaw on his heels. The rest of the NorthClan warriors were already in the clearing.

"Shouldn't we leave some cats here?" Mosswing asked, looking around the camp. "They could attack camp, couldn't they?"

Creekpaw shook his head. "Frostfang said not to worry about that."

The gray-furred tom nodded his head. "Well, let's go," he meowed. Mosswing led the way out of camp, the rest of the warriors and the two warrior apprentices following after him. Oakpaw flicked her tail at Creekpaw before she left the camp.

The run through the forest was a blur- as she was surrounded by so many cats and the goal of protecting their Clan in mind, she didn't pay attention to how long it took to get to the Snowstones.

She leapt down the ravine that led to the Snowstones and the clearing that surrounded it, but didn't pay attention to the scenery. Cats- larger than any Northern cat and covered in black fur- were fighting against the Clan cats with the same amount of skill that Oakpaw used to be sure only belonged to NorthClan. In spite of her surprise and confusion, the apprentice leapt at one of the dark-furred cats with her claws extended.

She dug her claws into the thin fur-  _how is his fur so thin?_  Oakpaw wondered as she dug her fangs into a paw.  _Isn't he cold?_  Out of the corner of her eye, she could see another apprentice quickly land two strikes on the dark-furred cat's muzzle. With a growl, the cat threw Oakpaw off of him. He backed up a few pawsteps, his eyes flicking from one apprentice to the other.

Oakpaw took less than a heartbeat to look at the other she-cat- she was panting, and already covered in clawmarks, which meant that she had been at the Snowstones longer than her. Her silver fur was even longer than Oakpaw's, and was covered in black markings. Her green eyes were filled with silver flecks, excitement, and caution. She was covered in GlacierClan scent. "Greenpaw," she introduced quickly.

"Oakpaw," the apprentice returned.

The tom leapt for them, but was inturrupted by another cat landing on their back- one that Oakpaw recognized. He sent a charming smile their way.

"Nice seeing you again, Oakpaw!" Graypaw meowed. "You've been training well, huh?" A small, snow-white pelted she-cat from next to him rolled her blue eyes, lashing her long, plumy tail to the side. Like Greenpaw, her pelt was covered in wounds, while Graypaw's pelt was nearly untouched.

"They had him under control, Graypaw," she meowed.

Graypaw adjusted his paws when the tom struggled, making sure that he would stay pinned. "Let me have fun, Winterypaw," he complained.

"No."

Oakpaw heard a growl from behind her. Quickly, she turned around, her lips curled backwards in a snarl. Another dark-pelted cat leapt at her, paws and claws extended. Oakpaw leapt backwards, tail lashing to keep her balance as she landed. The cat still charged at her. The tabby apprentice lifted a paw and struck the she-cat across the muzzle as hard as she could. As predicted, the dark-pelted cat pulled back her head, shaking it to try and clear her daze. While she was preoccupied, Oakpaw swept her fore paws out from under her.

Greenpaw, quick and agile like all GlacierClan cats, easily leapt on top of the dark-pelted cat. Her claws dug into her shoulders, but that didn't stop the dark pelted cat from under her to throw her off and swipe at Oakpaw's muzzle. Before Oakpaw could attack back, the she-cat leapt at her, pinning her under her.

A new apprentice- a DraftClan cat- leapt at the dark-pelted she-cat. She was a blur of white and gray and brown, easily knocking the larger cat off of Oakpaw. Before any more fighting could be done, the sound of manic laughter caught every cat's attention. Oakpaw turned her head up to look at the source.

Miststar was pinning down one of the dark-furred cats on one of the stones, an impassive look on her face despite the new wounds she carried. The tom she pinned down was the largest of the dark-furred cats. His head was thrown back as he laughed, his green eyes lit with a twisted joy. The sound sent shivers down Oakpaw's spine.

"You've won this time," the tom meowed, "but that doesn't mean that you've won the war."

"There is no war," Miststar growled.

The tom let out another laugh. "Oh, of course, not if you say there isn't!" His voice was coated thickly in a sarcastic tone. "Shadows!" he yowled. A black she-cat- small by the standards of the black-pelted cats but still large compared to the Northern cats- leapt on top of the stone (Oakpaw took a moment to assume that it was the North Stone) and easily knocked Miststar off of the tom. The she-cat's green eyes gave Oakpaw a familiar, yet unsettling feeling. Quickly, the black furred cats left the Snowstones.


	20. Chapter Eighteen

_"I think that you're not as dark as you want us to believe."_

“Swiftflight, Rustleclaw,” Miststar began, “follow them.  Make sure they leave Clan territory.”

A black and brown tabby tom, one with blazing blue eyes and was covered in both old scars and fresh wounds, nodded in agreement.  “Minktail and Ledgefoot will go with them.”

“As will Stormrunner and Wildshadow,” a silver tabby meowed, her blue eyes focused as she easily weaved among the cats on her way to the Snowstones.  She looked over her shoulder towards the crowd of cats. “Redstar, Cherrystar, will you be sending any cats?”

A ginger she-cat with brown patches in her fur nodded, her amber eyes filled with an angered light.  “Breezeclaw and Dawnfeather,” Cherrystar meowed flicking her tail as she spoke.

A flame colored tom padded after her, his tail flicking behind him.  “Redrain, Jadedwing, and Hickorytuft,” Redstar meowed. “They seemed to be heading toward FreezeClan territory.”

The named cats left the Snowstones in a strange, mismatched patrol.  The warriors held their heads high as they padded into FreezeClan’s territory.

“All Clans will stay here until they’ve been tended to by a medicine cat,” Cherrystar meowed, before looking at her fellow leaders.  “As long as you are okay with it,” she added.

The tabby tom nodded.  “GlacierClan will stay here.” _So he’s Jumpstar,_ Oakpaw thought.   _And the silver tabby must be Dewystar._

Miststar nodded her head, letting out a hum.

“FreezeClan won’t leave until the patrol returns,” Redstar meowed.

“We’ll wait,” Dewystar mewed.  When the leaders went silent, Oakpaw looked at the apprentices around her.

The cat that had knocked the dark-pelted cat off of her was DraftClan.  Her eyes were a stunning blue color, and her pelt was a base white. Light gray dapples covered her shoulders and back, and her paws were a dark gray that faded smoothly into the white.  Her tail tip, and another layer of dapples, were dark brown.

“I’m Dappledpaw,” the apprentice purred.

“I’m Greenpaw,” the GlacierClan apprentice introduced happily.  “And this is Oakpaw.”

The SnowClan apprentice sent Dappledpaw the same smile that he had given Oakpaw more than once- the young tabby sat and curled her tail around her paws.  The smile bothered her, for some reason that she didn’t know. “Graypaw,” he introduced. “And this grumpy ball of fur is Winterypaw.” The white-pelted she-cat rolled her eyes once more.

“Oakpaw!” a voice called.  She turned her head to look at Creekpaw as he shouldered his way through the crowd.  He looked relieved when he laid eyes on her. “Oakpaw!” he repeated, stopping next to her and sniffing her pelt.  “Are you okay? Are you dizzy or anything? Cold at all?”

Oakpaw sighed.  “I’m fine,” she meowed.  “Only a scratch. Shouldn’t you be with Featherripple?”

“He let me check on you first,” Creekpaw meowed.

“So, you’re a medicine cat apprentice?” Greenpaw asked, tilting her head.  

Creekpaw sent the GlacierClan cat a smile.  “Well, not like I could be anything else,” he meowed, flicking his tail towards his leg.

“Creekpaw,” Oakpaw growled, her eyes narrowing.

Creekpaw gave Oakpaw’s ear a lick, purring.  “Well, I gotta go!” The tom quickly padded back into the crowd of cats, his tail flicking from side to side behind him.  

“Say hi to Bluepaw for me!” Greenpaw called after him.  

Graypaw turned his hazel, narrowed eyes to look at her.  “You seem close to him,” he meowed.

Oakpaw nodded.  “We always have been,” she meowed.  

“Apprentices!” the voice of a cat yowled.  “Over here! Apprentices!”

Oakpaw turned her head, looking at a brown-pelted she-cat.  Her small paws and muzzle, as well as her chest was cream. Her tail, along with patches on her side and her back were a reddish color.  Her green eyes had a light of concern in them.

“Well, let’s go,” Dappledpaw meowed.  The small group rose to their paws, weaving between the cats around them to head to the brown and cream she-cat.

When their group got there, Coalpaw and Meadowpaw were already there, along with Stonepaw- Oakpaw wasn’t surprised to see Creekpaw already in front of the DraftClan tom.  Sitting next to the she-cat who had called all the apprentices was a light, blue-gray she-cat with bright blue eyes.

“Hey, there’s Bluepaw,” Greenpaw meowed.  “I’m gonna go say hi.”

“See you!” Dappledpaw meowed happily.  Greenpaw flicked her tail towards the group as she padded towards her friend.

“Who’s that cat?” Oakpaw asked, looking at Graypaw and Winterypaw as she flicked her tail towards the brown and cream she-cat.

“That’s Rosetail,” Winterypaw told her.  “The DraftClan medicine cat.” Oakpaw nodded, letting out a hum as she looked back at the cats around her.

Brokenpaw padded into the clearing with a three cats on his heels.  One was a lithe, brown pelted she-cat with golden eyes and tufted ears.  Another was a dark gray tom- his legs, ears, chest, and muzzle were shaded black, and his eyes were a fiery golden.  The last was a gray she-cat with dark blue eyes. All four cats were covered in wounds.

When the brown she-cat’s eyes met Oakpaw, she padded out of her group and headed towards her.  She stopped in front of her, sniffing her pelt.

Oakpaw tilted her head in confusion.  “Are you a medicine cat apprentice?” she asked.  She could see Winterypaw roll her eyes from the corner of her own.

“No,” Graypaw informed.  “Her name’s Heatherpaw, she’s just-”

“You’re so young!” Heatherpaw exclaimed, cutting off the other apprentice.  “They sent you out here to fight?” she asked.

“They wouldn’t send her out here if she didn’t know how to defend herself,” Winterypaw growled, her tone annoyed.

Heatherpaw ignored her.  “It looks like you’ve only been in training for a moon!”

“That’s because I have,” Oakpaw meowed, but it came out as more of a question.

“Heatherpaw! Darkpaw!” Rosetail called.  The apprentice- DraftClan apprentice, Oakpaw realized- looked over her shoulder at the medicine cat.  “Come here,” she meowed. Looking over Heatherpaw’s shoulder, she could see Greenpaw being treated by Bluepaw and wincing as herbs were applied to her wounds.

“But she’s younger!” Heatherpaw meowed, gesturing with her tail towards Oakpaw.  “Shouldn’t you treat her first?”

“She’s hurt less,” Rosetail argued, her tone gentle.  “Now come here.” She quickly looked over the group of cats, stopping as she looked at the dark gray she-cat with blue eyes.  “You, too, Falconpaw. Bluepaw will treat you when she’s done with her,” she meowed, flicking her tail towards Greenpaw.

Falconpaw lifted her head, seemingly surprised that the medicine cat knew her name.  She padded next to Darkpaw towards Rosetail, and with a huff, Heatherpaw joined them.

“She...” Oakpaw began, trailing off.  “She seems nice.” Graypaw laughed.


End file.
